Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Monday chose conservative former foreign minister Taro Aso to be the country's next prime minister, a party official announced.
   
Aso easily won a majority in the first round of voting despite a record field of five candidates vying for the leadership of the LDP and the right to succeed Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda.
   
Aso received 351 out of the 527 votes, party election chief Hideo Usui announced after voting. Kaoru Yosano, the minister for economic and fiscal policy and free-market advocate, trailed in second place at 66 votes.
   
"I express my gratitude that this election was held fairly," Aso said after winning the vote.
   
"From this moment on, there is no conflict among the five candidates who ran in the election," said Aso, who is widely expected to call early elections.
   
The parliament will convene Wednesday to install the new prime minister.
   
Among other candidates, former defence minister Yuriko Koike, who was vying to be Japan's first female prime minister, ended up with 46 votes despite the high-profile support of former prime minister Junichiro Koizumi.
   
Nobuteru Ishihara, the 51-year-old son of Tokyo's governor who said he wanted to represent a new generation of reform-minded lawmakers, received 37 votes.
   
Former defence minister Shigeru Ishiba came in last with 25 votes. Two votes were declared invalid.
   
The ruling party's members of parliament and representatives of regional chapters were eligible to vote.