key takeaways
- The Liberal Democratic Party will choose its new leader on Friday, 27 September, with a close race between Ishiba Shigeru, Koizumi Shinjirō, and Takaichi Sanae that is highly likely to come down to a runoff.
- The LDP’s next leader will have to move quickly to form a government and is virtually certain to call a snap election shortly after taking office, which could have implications for economic and foreign policy.