In the first round of voting, a record nine candidates had been in the running
A seasoned defence geek and a nationalist who would be Japan's first woman prime minister will go head-to-head in the final round of a ruling party leadership vote on Friday, the official count showed.
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) lawmakers and party members will choose between former defence minister Shigeru Ishiba and hawkish Sanae Takaichi -- a rare prominent woman in Japanese politics -- as the country's next premier.