On this episode, Garrison is rejoined by a valued guest of the podcast, Dr. Yoichiro Sato, to discuss the race to replace retiring Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.  Dr. Sato takes a deep dive into the circumstances that led to Suga's resignation, the role of the Olympics and the pandemic in upending Japanese politics, the leading candidates to replace Suga as leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (including a deep examination of factional politics and his predicted winner), and the possibility for greater instability in the Japanese political system in the years to come.

Dr. Yoichiro Sato is a professor at the Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University. Previously he was a professor at the US Defense Department’s Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies in Honolulu, Hawaii. He also has held teaching positions at the University of Auckland, among other roles. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science and Government from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, a M.A. of International Relations and Affairs from the University of South Carolina-Columbia, and a Bachelors in Law from Keio University.

Garrison Moratto is the founder and host of The New Diplomatist Podcast; he is a Ph.D. candidate in Public Policy - Foreign Policy at Liberty University in the United States where he also received a M.S. of International Relations as well as a B.S. in Government: Public Administration (Summa Cum Laude).

All guest opinions are their own and not that of The New Diplomatist podcast formally.  Please subscribe and leave a review for feedback; join the podcast on Patreon for bonus perks.  Follow The New Diplomatist on Twitter and Instagram.

Thank you for listening.

(Originally recorded September 4, 2021)