Democratic Party of Japan heavyweight Ichiro Ozawa broke his silence Thursday to announce he will run against Prime Minister Naoto Kan in the ruling DPJ's Sept. 14 presidential election, raising the possibility of a third prime minister in a year if he wins.
After much speculation, Ozawa met with former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama Thursday morning and announced his decision to run in the poll, the winner of which, as party president, will also presumably become prime minister. After the meeting, Ozawa told reporters he decided to run after receiving Hatoyama's backing.
"Former Prime Minister Hatoyama said that he would fully cooperate and back me up if I decided to run in the presidential election," Ozawa said. "Therefore, I have just come to the decision to run."