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| Following the resignation of President Yasuo Fukuda, the Party held an election to choose the 23rd President at the Party Headquarters on Monday, September 22, 2008. Eligible voters totaled 527: 303 members of the House of Representatives, 83 members of the House of Councillors, and 141 representatives from 47 prefectural federations of the Party branches. Taro Aso, current Secretary-General of the Party obtained 351 votes and was therefore elected as the new Party President. This was approved at the Joint Plenary Meeting of Party Members of Both Houses of the Diet, after which when Aso was confirmed as new Party President. The number of votes received by each candidate was as follows:
Taro Aso' s Personal Data Fukuoka Prefecture, 8th Electoral District (9th term member of the House of Representatives) Born on September 20, 1940, Aso graduated from the Faculty of Politics and Economics, at Gakushuin University. In 1973, he became the President and CEO of Aso Cement Co., Ltd. He was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1979, and since then has served nine terms. He has held the positions of Minister for Foreign Affairs, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications, Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy, and Minister of State and Director-General, Economic Planning Agency. He has also served as Secretary-General and Chairman of the Policy Research Council in the Party. His great-great-grandfather is Toshimichi Okubo, one of founders of modern Japan who served in the Meiji government. His grandfather is former Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida and his father-in-law is former Prime Minister Zenko Suzuki. His Japanese-language website is: http://www.aso-taro.jp/ |
