Video: Shigeru Ishiba elected as Japan's new PM

Former Defence Minister Shigeru Ishiba has secured the position of Japan’s Prime Minister on his fifth attempt, emerging victorious in a highly competitive race among nine candidates to succeed Fumio Kishida.

Ishiba, 67, will be sworn in as Japan’s 102nd Prime Minister by the Diet on October 1, the same day Kishida officially steps down.

In a run-off vote, Ishiba defeated hardline nationalist Sanae Takaichi, concluding one of Japan’s most unpredictable leadership elections in decades, with a record number of nine candidates, according to Reuters.