菅首相「総裁選は粛々と」　自民幹事長と会談

　菅義偉首相は２５日、自民党の二階俊博幹事長と党本部で会談した。関係者によると、首相は自身の９月末の任期満了に伴う総裁選について「粛々とやってください。総裁選挙管理委員会が決めたら異論はない」と伝えた。
　選管は２６日に会合を開く。９月１７日告示、２９日投開票の日程で決定される見通しだ。
　会談は約３０分で終了。首相は首相官邸に戻った際、新型コロナウイルスの感染拡大に触れ「病床確保が極めて大事なので、党と政府が一体となって確保に努めようという話だ」と記者団に語った。「衆院解散の時期についても話したのか」との質問には答えなかった。（2021/08/25-12:38）

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga expressed hopes Wednesday that the ruling Liberal Democratic Party will hold a leadership election quietly.
   Suga told LDP Secretary-General Toshihiro Nikai that the election should be held quietly and that he has no objection to whatever the party's presidential election administration committee decides, according to sources close to the meeting.
   The election comes as Suga's term as LDP president runs out at the end of September. The committee is slated to meet Thursday to finalize the date of the election, which is expected to be held on Sept. 29.
   After his 30-minute meeting with Nikai at the LDP headquarters, Suga told reporters that they agreed to work together to secure hospital beds amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.
   The prime minister did not respond to a question on whether he and Nikai discussed a possible date of an election for the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of parliament.