Mizuoka Set for 4th Term as Chief of CDP Group in Upper House

Tokyo, Aug. 24 (Jiji Press)--Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Shunichi Mizuoka is set to serve a fourth term as head of the House of Councillors caucus mainly comprising lawmakers of the opposition party.

On Monday, the 40-member group in the upper chamber of the Diet, Japan's parliament, announced an election for its leader in line with the expiration of Mizuoka's current third term. Only Mizuoka, 70, ran in the poll, and he secured a fourth term without a vote.

Mizuoka is expected to officially launch his new term, which runs until the end of the 2028 ordinary Diet session, after obtaining approval at a plenary meeting of the party's lawmakers Tuesday.

Attention is being paid to a decision Mizuoka would make on a proposed integration of the CDP and two other opposition parties, the Centrist Reform Alliance and Komeito, as many members of his party are cautious about the three-way merger.

The deadline for concluding the three parties' negotiations on the possible integration has effectively been set at the end of this month.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]