Japan: And the Winner Is...

The next Prime Minister of Japan will be the current Finance Minister, Yoshihiko Noda.

Yoshihiko Noda
from www.dpj.or.jp

Article: Wall Street Journal, Noda Next to Take Up Burden of Rebuilding, Toko Sekiguchi and George Nishiyama

Mr. Noda was elected in a run-off against Trade and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda by 215 to 175.  In a recent poll, Noda and Kaieda had public support of 12% and 9% respectively.  The candidate with the most public support, 48%, was Seiji Maehara, but he was knocked out in the first round of voting.