Nine ruling Liberal Democratic Party presidential candidates dashed out of the blocks on Sept. 12, the first day of official campaigning, on a two-week sprint to the vote. 

With all vying to replace Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the nine hopefuls launched their campaigns using various words and deeds--from using a superstition as motivation to delivering policy speeches at the party’s headquarters in Tokyo’s Nagatacho district.

On another sweltering late summer day in Tokyo, with temperatures exceeding 30 degrees, one candidate started off hotter than the rest.

Sanae Takaichi, 63, economic security minister, showed up in winter clothing at her campaign launch ceremony held in the Diet building.

“I’m wearing the same clothes I wore on the previous LDP presidential election day, which I regrettably lost,” Takaichi explained. “You may think this is bad luck, but back then at that time, at the moment of my defeat, I mumbled to myself, ‘I’ll do it again.’ ” 

She added, “This time, I am going to win. With that in mind, I am wearing these hot winter clothes today.”

Takaichi, who hopes to become the first female president of the ruling party, also paid a visit to Hiejinja shrine near the Diet building in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward.

After offering prayers, she said with a smile, “With a clean slate, I will do my very best.”

Takayuki Kobayashi, 49, a former economic security minister, told the media in the Diet building, “I will make Japan a leading country in the world, and a truly autonomous country that does not go every which way following the trends of other countries. I will run for the presidency with this strong desire in mind.”

He referred to the fact that he has won election to his Diet seat four times and is in his 40s, one of the youngest candidates running. 

"I will be a symbol of the serious rebirth of the LDP,” Kobayashi said. 

Yoshimasa Hayashi, 63, chief Cabinet secretary, told reporters at the Lower House members’ residence in Tokyo’s Akasaka district, “The battle begins now.”

He quoted “fu-rin-ka-zan,” a four-kanji character version of a famous phrase from Sun Tzu’s "The Art of War," which says "you must be as swift as the wind, as quiet as the forest, as fierce as the fire, as unshakable as the mountain.”

The kanji character of fu-rin-ka-zan’s “rin” (forest) is the same as Hayashi’s last name.

“Until now, I have been doing things quietly like the ‘forest,’” Hayashi said. “But from now on, I will fight with the mindset of fu-rin-ka-zan, as swift as the wind, as quiet as the forest, as fierce as the fire, and as unmoving and unwavering as the mountain.”

Shinjiro Koizumi, 43, former environment minister, also visited Hiejinja shrine.

Koizumi, the youngest candidate of all and a son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, told reporters, “It is a long road ahead.”

“I will cherish every day and carefully appeal my thoughts one by one (to voters), and do my best with all my might so that I can win a victory at the end,” he said.

Yoko Kamikawa, 71, foreign minister, was the last of the nine candidates to hold a news conference to announce her candidacy on the day before the presidential campaign officially kicked off.

Kamikawa, who also hopes to become the first female LDP president, told reporters at the Lower House members’ residence that things have proceeded “at a furious pace.”

“But I will go into today’s (schedule) with a sense of urgency,” Kamikawa said.

Katsunobu Kato, 68, former chief Cabinet secretary, spent the morning at the grave of his father-in-law, Mutsuki Kato.

Mutsuki was a veteran LDP Lower House member and a close ally of Shintaro Abe, father of the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Taro Kono, 61, digital transformation minister, told reporters at the Lower House members’ residence that he would campaign on real issues rather than just rhetoric. 

“I want to make the LDP presidential election a campaign in which the LDP is seen as the party that can take charge of the country, by holding tough policy discussions, rather than just talking about what is comfortable to hear without avoiding difficult issues,” Kono said. 

Shigeru Ishiba, 67, a former LDP secretary-general, held a ceremony to officially launch his campaign at the LDP headquarters.

Ishiba, who is running for the party presidency for the fifth time, emphasized that this is his “last battle” for the post.

“I want to establish an LDP that is trusted by the people and follows the rules. Only the prime minister and party president can do that,” Ishiba said.

Toshimitsu Motegi, 68, LDP secretary-general, told reporters in the morning, “I would like to make a strong appeal for the revitalization of the economy, the vitality of rural areas and the reorganization of the Japanese archipelago.”

In the afternoon, the nine candidates gathered at LDP headquarters and delivered their speeches, in which they spoke of their policies, views and other issues. Voting will be held on Sept. 27 with ballot counting that day.