Ishiba can best be described as the ‘Anti-Abe’ in that his ideological stances on domestic matters are very much the antithesis of Abe’s deep conservatism.5 Ishiba is best categorised as a moderate conservative or even right-of-centre on several issues. His positive stances on gender-related social issues such as allowing married women to ret

Yet the fact remains that Ishiba challenged Abe’s leadership of the LDP more times than anyone else’s, campaigning against him in 2014, 2015, 2018 and 2020 (against the Abe-backed Yoshihide Suga). Perhaps the rivalry has more to do with political factors, as Ishiba seems to be staunchly opposed to anyone perceived to be close to Abe even after

the two men was personal, because outwardly both men seemed to have much in common. Both Ishiba and Abe were stated to be members or sympathisers of the Nippon Kaigi, an organisation dedicated to rewriting Japan’s 20th century history in a way that whitewashes or minimises its activities during the Second World War. Both men were old-school conse