Shinzo Abe, a conservative who favors hardline diplomacy and traditional values, was elected Wednesday as the 21st president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, paving the way for him to become Japan's youngest postwar prime minister.
He will also be the first prime minister born after World War II.
Abe took 464 of 703 votes in the election, while Foreign Minister Taro Aso received 136 and Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki 102, the LDP election committee said. One ballot was declared invalid.
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