Japan PM hopefuls Kishida and Kono battle for lawmaker votes

TOKYO -- The ruling Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election is shaping up to be a tight race among the top three contenders, a Nikkei/TV Tokyo survey has found, making it increasingly likely that the winner will be decided through a runoff.

Former LDP policy chief Fumio Kishida led in lawmaker support, with vaccination czar Taro Kono right behind him and Sanae Takaichi trailing in third place, according to the survey conducted on Tuesday and Wednesday.