The ruling Liberal Democratic Party scrambled to find a successor to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday as former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda and Finance Minister Fukushiro Nukaga expressed their intention to vie for the LDP presidency and thus the prime ministership.
LDP Secretary General Taro Aso, who leads a small faction and was reportedly considered a front-runner, had yet to declare his candidacy as of Thursday night and was apparently trying to gain more support from other factions.
But Fukuda has reportedly gained the backing of some LDP executives, notably those led by Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura, who chairs the LDP's largest faction, making him a powerful rival to Aso.