Japan's Kishida shuffles Cabinet and party posts to solidify power

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is shuffling his Cabinet and key party posts Wednesday in an apparent move to strengthen his position before a key party leadership vote next year, Report informs via AP.

It's the second Cabinet shuffle since Kishida took office in October 2021 when he promised fairer distribution of economic growth, measures to tackle Japan's declining population and a stronger national defense. Russia's war in Ukraine, rising energy prices and Japan's soaring defense costs have created challenges in his tenure, keeping his support ratings at low levels.

Kishida’s three-year term as Liberal Democratic Party president expires in September 2024, when he would seek a second term. His faction is only the fourth largest in the LDP, so he must stay on good terms with the others to maintain his position.

He distributed Cabinet posts to reflect the balance of power, and nearly half of the positions are shared between the two largest factions associated with late leader Shinzo Abe and former leader Taro Aso.

His Cabinet resigned en masse in a ceremonial meeting earlier Wednesday before retained Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno announced the new lineup.

Kishida appointed five women in his 19-member Cabinet. He currently has two, and five would match Abe's 2014 Cabinet and one in 2001 under then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.