Japan's Suga quits as premier, throwing open succession race

Suga told reporters he couldn't campaign for re-election as leader of Liberal Democratic Party this month while battling the virus, ending his premiership almost exactly a year after it started

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced plans to resign after failing to control the country’s coronavirus surge, with two former foreign ministers seen as leading the pack to take over, weeks before a general election. 

In a surprise announcement, Suga told reporters Friday he couldn’t campaign for re-election as leader of the Liberal Democratic Party this month while battling the virus, ending his premiership almost exactly a year after it started. Whoever becomes the next LDP leader is virtually assured of becoming prime minister due to the party’s dominance in parliament.

“Since I became prime minister a year ago, dealing