seiko noda. earlier nhk world's ambei joined us. meiko gan by telling us why abe didn't have any competition this time around. >> only seiko noda was considering a run. she said it would give an opportunity to discuss issues and it would lead to political stability. but she wasn't able to get enough recommendations. she belongs to no faction and that made it difficult for her to get widespread support within the party. there are seven factions within the ldp and the leaders of all of them threw support behind abe. i think many ldp lawmakers saw no reason to try and field a rival candidate. three years ago abe led the ldp to a landslide victory securing the party's return to power. and since abe became prime minister, the ldp has won a majority in two other national elections. so ldp members see abe as someone who steered the party back to strength and ensured stability. we can also imagine that faction leaders hope their support could be rewarded in the future with cabinet posts and other positions for their allies. and this is an i