At 44, he commands constant media attention with his clean-cut image and reformist pledges.
That included a proposal last year to revise a 19th-century law requiring married couples to choose one surname – in practice, almost always the man’s – although it has since been dropped.
The father-of-two young children, he took a brief paternity leave while serving as Environment Minister – still a rare move for Japan’s mostly male lawmakers.
He was drafted in as Agriculture Minister by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba this year during a crisis over ballooning rice prices, and managed to tame public anxiety by releasing government stockpiles.
Koizumi would become the youngest prime minister in modern Japanese history if elected.
He is seen among critics as inexperienced and is often the subject of online memes, such as when he said as Environment Minister that the fight against climate change “has got to be fun, it’s got to be cool, and it’s got to be sexy, too”.
Koizumi is a regular visitor to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, which is seen as a symbol of Japan’s militarist past because it enshrines convicted war criminals with 2.5 million war dead.
The nationalist
Sanae Takaichi, 64, is a popular nationalist who is known for her hardline attitude towards China and her regular visits to Yasukuni, although she has softened her rhetoric in the current LDP race in an apparent attempt to expand her support base.
She already enjoys passionate support in the party’s conservative wing and among followers of her political mentor, assassinated ex-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Takaichi has focused her policy messages on strengthening national defence and economic security.
She said at a panel discussion this month that she wouldn’t shy away from pushing for tariff renegotiations with the United States if the implementation of the deal becomes “unfair” or “harmful” for Japan.
She has also voiced strong concerns about crime and the economic influence of foreigners in Japan, calling for stricter rules on property purchases.
Her rise comes as the LDP has been losing voters, particularly to Sanseito, a new nationalist party that expanded its support with anti-immigration messages.
On the economic front, Takaichi supports aggressive monetary easing and big fiscal spending, echoing Shinzo Abe’s controversial “Abenomics” policies.
Once a drummer in a college heavy metal band, Takaichi looks to Margaret Thatcher as her political hero.
The Beatlemaniac
Yoshimasa Hayashi, 64, is a Harvard-educated scion of a political dynasty and has deep policy knowledge.
He has served as the Chief Cabinet Secretary for two successive moderate prime ministers – incumbent Ishiba and Fumio Kishida – and has pledged to continue their programmes.
A deft political hand, Hayashi has worked in a wide range of ministerial positions, including agriculture, defence, diplomacy, education and fiscal policy. Hayashi has also been tapped to lead ministries at short notice, replacing scandal-hit ministers.
The soft-spoken Hayashi has not inspired nationwide voter excitement, despite his open ambition to lead the country.
He is a passionate fan of the Beatles who plays guitar and piano, and is in a band with fellow LDP politicians.
As Foreign Minister at a Group of Seven meeting in Liverpool in 2021, he took to a white piano at the Beatles Story Museum and sang Imagine in front of other top diplomats that included former US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Liz Truss, British Foreign Secretary at the time.
Hayashi, a fluent English speaker, says he learned the language by studying Beatles songs.
-Agence France-Presse
