Junya Ogawa (left) and Takeshi Shina. — VNA/VNS Photo

TOKYO — Japan's main opposition party the Centrist Reform Alliance on Thursday officially began a brief race to select its new leader, as the recently established party seeks to rebuild after a crushing defeat in the latest general election.

A new leader is set to be chosen Friday in the two-horse race being contested by Junya Ogawa, a former secretary general of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, and Takeshi Shina, the CDPJ's former acting policy chief.

The race will be won by the candidate with the most votes from the party's 49 House of Representatives lawmakers, with no run-off round.

The party established in January united lower house members of the CDPJ with the Komeito party and was intended to bring about a centrist realignment in politics amid a "rightward" shift under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

But it was dealt a severe blow in Sunday's election, falling from 167 seats before the official campaigning kicked off to 49 and becoming the smallest main opposition party in postwar Japanese history.

Its co-leaders Yoshihiko Noda and Tetsuo Saito, respective former heads of the CDPJ and Komeito, said Monday they would step down to take responsibility for the loss, paving the way for the leadership contest. — KYODO