Tokyo: Japanese lawmakers voted in a runoff on Monday to reelect Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leader Shigeru Ishiba, 67, as the 103rd prime minister of the country. He won against Yoshihiko Noda of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDPJ). This marks the first time in over 30 years that the election of a prime minister in Japan has required a runoff. According to Anadolu Agency, the vote proceeded to a runoff after neither of the main candidates managed to secure the minimum support of 233 lawmakers in the lower house of parliament. Ishiba received 221 votes, while Noda garnered 160, allowing Ishiba to secure the premiership. Ishiba, however, easily won the election in the upper house of parliament, where the LDP holds a majority with the support of its junior partner, Komeito. With Ishiba winning in the runoff, he will lead a minority government with backing from smaller opposition parties. He is expected to announce a new Cabinet later today following the mass resignation of his previous Ca binet members, which was intended to pave the way for the special four-day session of Parliament, locally known as the Diet, to vote for the new prime minister. The fresh vote was necessitated by the snap general elections held on Oct. 27, which resulted in a hung parliament with no party achieving a majority in the house of 465 lawmakers. In the elections, Ishiba's LDP and Komeito lost their majority, while the opposition CDPJ made significant gains but fell short of forming a government. Ishiba was initially elected as the 102nd prime minister of Japan in early October following his victory in the LDP leadership race in September. He was aiming to garner support from the Democratic Party for the People, which increased its representation to 21 in the lower house of Japan's bi-cameral parliament. The LDP and Komeito together are short of 18 seats for a simple majority of 233, and they do not meet this mark even with the support of six independents. Negotiating support from smaller opposition parties impl ies that the LDP-Komeito coalition will have to concede numerous positions inside and outside the parliament to lawmakers from outside the two parties. It remains to be seen who from the Ishin party, which has 38 lawmakers, will extend their support. The LDP has predominantly ruled Japan since its founding in 1955.