Mori's job remains up for grabs

In this story: Old-style politics Replacement PM RELATED STORIES, SITES

TOKYO, Japan -- Backroom dealings to find a successor for embattled Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori were expected to intensify as lawmakers met to discuss passing Japan's new budget.

The ruling coalition has supported Mori during recent parliamentary debates, but there is increasing speculation that his party will select his replacement in behind-the-scenes talks once the budget is passed.

Ruling lawmakers fear they are headed for a defeat in the nationwide upper house election this summer because of Mori's waning popularity.

This belief is underscored by the fact that an independent candidate won a governor's election in a prefecture (state) north of Tokyo on Sunday.

Mori has become increasingly unpopular after being seen to do little to help Japan's flagging economy.

He was also widely criticized for continuing a golf game after having learned that a U.S. submarine sank a Japanese training vessel off Hawaii, killing nine people.

Earlier this month, Mori survived his third vote of no-confidence.

Old-style politics

On Sunday the seat of governor of Chiba, a prefecture (state) bordering Tokyo, fell to feminist Akiko Domoto.

Domoto, an upper house lawmaker who ran as an independent without the support of any major party, becomes the nation's third female governor.

With grass-roots support, the 68-year-old former journalist defeated candidates backed by the ruling party and by the opposition.

Domoto's victory is disturbing for Japan's political establishment because she is the third grass-roots governor to win recently.

"I recognize the deep significance of this election," Domoto said Monday in a televised news conference. "Chiba has played a major role in drastically speeding up the move to 21st century politics."

Her victory highlights the fact that Japanese are increasingly growing disenchanted with old-style politics amid a shaky stock market, rising unemployment, and banks saddled with bad debts.

Replacement PM

Still, it is unclear to anyone but top Liberal Democratic Party insiders what standards are being used to select candidates to replace Mori and what policies -- if any -- are being discussed behind the scenes.

Mori's LDP typically chooses leaders in private meetings by powerbrokers at fancy Japanese-style restaurants. Such gatherings are expected to intensify when the budget passes, probably Monday evening.

The 82 trillion yen budget (about 664 billion U.S. dollars) includes public works spending, funds to encourage computer technology and other measures to improve an economy that has been in a slowdown for more than 10 years.

Aware of his possible replacement, Mori told parliament on Monday that his party needs to asses its unpopularity. "We need to reflect and find out the cause," Mori said.

The person the LDP chooses as its leader automatically becomes prime minister because the party controls the majority in the lower house in a coalition with two other parties.

The LDP rose to power after Japan's defeat in World War II by supporting big business and farmers at a time when the nation was still trying to modernize.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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March 19, 2001

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