高市氏、来月９日に出馬表明　保守層固め焦点―自民総裁選

　自民党の高市早苗経済安全保障担当相（６３）は９月９日に記者会見し、党総裁選（９月１２日告示、同２７日投開票）への立候補を表明する。同氏の事務所が２９日に発表した。総裁選出馬は２０２１年に続き２回目。
　高市氏は党内の「岩盤保守層」に支持基盤を置き、前回は国会議員票を中心に善戦した。ただ、この時に推薦人に名を連ねた小林鷹之前経済安保担当相（４９）が今回は自ら出馬することを表明。推薦人２０人の確保が一時難航した。乱戦模様となった総裁選でどこまで保守層を固められるかがポイントになりそうだ。（2024/08/29-12:46）

Japanese economic security minister Sanae Takaichi will announce on Sept. 9 her candidacy in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's upcoming presidential election, her office said Thursday.
   The Sept. 27 vote will be Takaichi's second shot at securing the party's top post. In the previous LDP leadership race in 2021, which was won by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Takaichi, a 63-year-old vocal conservative, put up a good fight on the back of support from conservative lawmakers.
   However, the decision of former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi, 49, one of Takaichi's backers in the 2021 election, to run in the race to pick a successor to Kishida, who has said he will not seek re-election as party chief, presents a hurdle for her.
   Kobayashi's candidacy made it temporarily difficult for Takaichi to round up the 20 nominations needed to run in the LDP leadership election. Takaichi will need to get conservatives behind her to win the potentially crowded race.
   There is a strong demand in the party for female candidacy. Among other women lawmakers, Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, 71, and former internal affairs minister Seiko Noda, 63, have indicated they will stand in the election.