On Sept. 28, almost one month after the crushing defeat of the Liberal Democratic Party that swept the party from power for only the second time in more than five decades, Taro Kono, Sadakazu Tanigaki and Yasutoshi Nishimura will compete to take leadership of Japan's opposition. In the election scheduled for Monday, 199 lawmakers serving in the Diet and 300 party faithful will choose the new president.

The following are profiles of the three candidates for the LDP presidency:

SADAKAZU TANIGAKI

As the only candidate for the LDP over the age of 50 and to have had a cabinet post, Tanigaki is the clear favorite to win the presidency. Kyodo News reported on Thursday that LDP members expected half of the votes in Monday's election to go to Tanigaki. This is his second attempt to take the leadership of the party after he contested in the 2006 presidential race, which was won by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Tanigaki served as finance minister in the cabinet of Prime Minister of Junichiro Koizumi between 2003 and 2006. He has also served as chief policymaker for the party and as the minister of construction and transport.

At the age of 64, Tanigaki was elected to the Diet in 1983, when he ran for the seat in Kyoto that his father held until he passed away that year. He has held onto his seat ever since.

Tanigaki believes that the LDP needs to return to its roots if it is to become a viable opposition and perhaps regain power in the future. He says that at base, the LDP has placed value on family ties, the nation and community, and Japan's culture and natural environment. He believes that the party needs to emphasize these values if it is to regain the trust of the electorate.

At a news conference in Tokyo on Friday, Tanigaki also expressed concern about Japan's future in a changing international climate, in which Asia is growing in both economic clout and power.

"Unlike Europe, we (in Asia) do not have unity on issues such as human rights," he said. "We need to rectify this."

TARO KONO

Like many politicians in Japan, 46-year-old Kono is not the first in his family to pursue a career in parliament. His grandfather, father and great-uncle have all worked at the Diet. Kono was first elected to the Diet in 1996 at the age of 33 and since then has seen his stature within the LDP rise gradually, and he stands for the president without ever having held a cabinet post. Kono has, however, served as a senior vice minister of justice.

At a news conference in Tokyo on Friday, Kono stressed the importance for the LDP of molding itself into a viable opposition in the aftermath of the electoral battering it suffered at the hands of the DPJ in August.

"This may be the last leadership race of the LDP if it refuses to change," said Kono. "The nation needs an opposition party, not the LDP."

For Kono, a viable opposition would advocate a slimmed-down government that advocates policies to promote economic growth and supports a strong social security system. He also said he wanted to see an end to internal faction politics in the party and more decisions made by elected politicians than bureaucrats.

YASUTOSHI NISHIMURA

Nishimura, also 46, enters the presidential race as a virtual unknown. Indeed, at a Friday news conference he admitted that as he has toured the country campaigning, few people even recognise his face.

Nishimura has represented Hyogo Prefecture since 2003 and argues that the LDP needs to rectify its decision making process, from being top-down to being bottom up, giving people a voice in the policymaking decisions taken by the party, be it in opposition or the government.

Source: Xinhua