On August 8, 1989, Kaifu Toshiki (born 1931) was elected the 14th president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and, next day, the 76th prime minister of Japan since the cabinet system was instituted in the country in 1885. Despite much popular support Kaifu was abandoned by his party and left office in October 1991.

Kaifu Toshiki was born on January 2, 1931, in Nagoya City. His father owned and managed the oldest photography studio in the city. The studio had been founded by Kaifu's grandfather. After finishing a local primary school, Kaifu attended Tokai Middle School in the same city, then enrolled in the special two-year law course at Chuo University in Tokyo, which he completed in 1951. The next year he was admitted to the night school program in the law faculty of Waseda University as a junior and graduated from the program with the Bachelor of Arts degree in 1954.

While at the middle...