Japan's ruling party will choose Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's successor around September 15. Japan's ruling party will choose Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's successor around September 15, Kyodo news agency said on Saturday, after Abe abruptly announced his resignation for health reasons on Friday, Reuters reports. The president of Abe's Liberal Democratic Party is virtually assured of being prime minister because of the LDP's majority in parliament's lower house. Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso, a former prime minister who is also Abe's finance minister, said he did not plan to join the race to succeed Abe, Kyodo said. The main scenario is for the election to be held on September 15, Kyodo said, while the format and date will be decided on Tuesday, media reported.

Source: The Standard August 29, 2020 07:07 UTC