TOKYO, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- Japanese politician Hiroyuki Hosoda, former speaker of the House of Representatives, died on Friday at a hospital in Tokyo at the age of 79, according to local media outlets.
The exact cause of Hosoda's death remained unknown.
Hosoda, a member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), announced his resignation from the post of lower house speaker last month midway through his term, citing health issues.
The politician, however, told the press that he would continue to work as a lawmaker, and expressed his desire to run in the next lower house election, national news agency Kyodo reported.
According to local media outlets, Hosoda was twice hospitalized this year. In September, he received preventive treatment for an issue linked to blood vessels in his brain and was also taken to hospital in July after suffering heatstroke.
Before assuming the post of lower house speaker in November 2021, he was elected to the lower house 11 times from a constituency in Japan's western prefecture of Shimane.
After his first election victory in 1990, he held a number of key posts including chief cabinet secretary, secretary-general of the LDP, and the chair of the LDP's General Council.
The veteran lawmaker was hit by scandals in his late career as he was criticized by the public and opposition parties for not offering sufficient explanations for his connections to the controversial Unification Church.
Hosoda, who in October told a news conference that he had attended events linked to the organization in the past, was also accused of sexually harassing female reporters and LDP officials, allegations which he denied, according to media reports.
Also on Friday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida offered his condolences to Hosoda's family.
A by-election to fill the seat held by Hosoda is expected to be called in April, Kyodo reported citing a government source. ■