1. The new party leader becomes prime minister by virtue of the party's majority in parliament's powerful lower house.
2. The party president is expected to become prime minister by virtue of the LDP's majority in parliament's powerful lower house.
3. A ruling coalition loss in the upper house election would not force Abe to resign, because the more powerful lower chamber elects the prime minister.
4. Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul signalled yesterday he might make a fresh bid for presidency, in comments sure to stir unease in the country's powerful secular establishment.
5. The interior minister in Iran is a powerful position in charge of holding elections and local administrations throughout the country.
6. All sides say there is room for all in the next government, but key is who leads it and takes the powerful post of prime minister.
7. The DPJ leader is almost certain to become Japan's next prime minister as the party controls the majority of the more powerful lower house.
8. But no vote need be held until 2013 and others question whether the prime minister would risk losing control of the powerful lower house.
9. But the prime minister said yesterday he did not plan to resign or call a snap election for parliament's powerful lower house soon.
10. A key sticking point is which party will appoint the interior minister, who oversees powerful security forces.