Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga To Step Down

CNN: Yoshihide Suga announces intention to step down after less than a year as Japan's Prime Minister

Tokyo (CNN)Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Friday said he will not run in his party's forthcoming leadership election, effectively ceding the premiership and opening the race to other candidates after a turbulent term of less than a year.

Suga, who assumed the top role last September after his predecessor, Shinzo Abe, stepped down due to health issues, has seen public support slump as he struggled to contain Japan's growing coronavirus outbreak.

"Working on Covid countermeasures and election activities requires a tremendous amount of energy, so I decided that I cannot work on both and should choose one of them," he told reporters in Tokyo Friday.

"My mission as a Prime Minister is to protect the life and livelihood of people, so I'd like to concentrate on this." He added that

he will hold a news conference next week.

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More News On Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga Deciding To Step Down

Japan’s Suga Quits as Premier, Throwing Open Succession Race -- Bloomberg

Yoshihide Suga, Japan's Prime Minister, Plans to Resign Sept. 30 -- New York Times

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to step down -- The Hill

Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumps 2% as Prime Minister Suga bows out of governing party’s leadership race -- CNBC

Japan: why PM Suga unexpectedly stepped down – and what happens next -- The Conversation

Factbox-Possible candidates to become Japan's next prime minister -- Reuters