DPJ eyeing party leadership election on Sept. 5

TOKYO, July 13 Kyodo -
The Democratic Party of Japan is planning to hold a party presidential election
on Sept. 5, earlier than its initial schedule, a senior DPJ lawmaker said
Tuesday.
The plan is intended to renew the ruling party's leadership lineup following a
serious setback in the House of Councillors election on Sunday, the lawmaker
said.
The DPJ's initial plan was to hold the leadership election in late September,
when Prime Minister Naoto Kan's term as the party's leader expires.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku said at a news conference that whoever
becomes new president of the DPJ will choose new members of the Cabinet.
Sengoku's remarks suggest that Kan, who took office one month ago, will also
choose Cabinet members from scratch if he gets reelected in the DPJ
presidential election.
The lineup of Kan's Cabinet had only minor changes from the one named by his
predecessor Yukio Hatoyama, who resigned abruptly in early June.
The ruling coalition led by the DPJ failed to maintain a majority in the upper
house. But the DPJ remains the major ruling party as it holds an overwhelming
majority in the more powerful House of Representatives.
==Kyodo