Ishiba Resigns as Prime Minister in Press Conference at Official Residence | WPN World People News

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba announced his resignation as prime minister and president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) at a press conference held at the Prime Minister’s Office on the evening of the 7th. He stated that, in light of recent intra-party pressure and domestic and international challenges, he believed the time had come for a “phase-ending” and that new leadership should take the helm to guide the country into its next stage. Ishiba admitted that his greatest regret was failing to dispel the public’s distrust of politics. He also stressed that if the LDP does not change, it has no future. Stepping down after less than a year in office has injected new uncertainty into Japan’s political landscape.

Under Ishiba’s leadership, the LDP suffered consecutive defeats in the December 2024 House of Representatives election and the July 2025 House of Councillors election, falling short of his target of winning 50 seats. For the first time in its 70-year history, the LDP was reduced to a minority ruling party. Growing voices within the party demanded he take responsibility for the losses. Although Ishiba attempted to stabilize the political situation and emphasized that “national politics must not come to a standstill,” he ultimately chose to resign following advice from heavyweight party figures such as Taro Aso, Yoshihide Suga, and Shinjiro Koizumi.

Despite his short tenure, Ishiba achieved some breakthroughs in economic policy, including distributing subsidies to counter inflation and raising the minimum wage, which gained support from parts of the public. At the press conference, he noted that he had recently completed tariff negotiations with the United States and signed a memorandum of understanding, followed by an executive order from the U.S. president. He described this as the completion of an important mission during his time in office. His resignation, he said, is intended to give a new leader space to push forward reforms and unite the party. The LDP will hold its presidential election in early October.