Former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who is running once again to lead the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, may be highly regarded by the general public and local LDP chapters due to his support for rural areas, but he is wildly unpopular among fellow legislators in the party due to his past actions and outspoken nature — with some even calling him a “traitor.”

Ishiba, now making his fifth bid for the LDP presidenthas had difficulty securing support from his party colleagues beyond the 20 legislators who nominated him for the election. Some 30 LDP legislators plan to vote for Ishiba, while over 50 are backing his rival, former Environment Minister Koizumi Shinjiro, a Jiji Press survey released Sunday showed.

Why is the former defense minister so unpopular among LDP politicians?