“Fumio Kishida, a former foreign minister who has called for Japan’s missile defenses to be beefed up, was elected ruling party leader on Wednesday, assuring him of becoming the nation’s next prime minister. Mr. Kishida, 64 years old, is an establishment choice who, like his predecessors, supports a strong U.S.-Japan alliance and is concerned about China’s military expansion. He also favors aggressive government spending worth hundreds of billions of dollars to lift Japan’s economy out of the doldrums caused by measures to limit the spread of Covid-19.”

“In an initial round of voting among four candidates to lead the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Mr. Kishida was neck-and-neck with former foreign and defense minister Taro Kono, who enjoyed higher support among the LDP’s rank and file. The two proceeded to a runoff vote in which the LDP’s members of Parliament controlled the outcome, and the lawmakers preferred Mr. Kishida. Parliament is set to convene Monday to select a new prime minister, and Mr. Kishida is assured of victory because of his party’s control of the legislature. He will succeed Yoshihide Suga, who announced his resignation in early September after a surge in Covid-19 cases” WSJ reports.

Japanese politics nerds will totally get the joke in the headline. I know it. I feel very secure in the knowledge that they will find humor in the wordplay there. This is big. Like Kaiju-big.