Editing Hayato Ikeda (section)

==Retirement and death==

Ikeda contracted [[laryngeal cancer]] and was admitted to the National Cancer Center for treatment in September 1964, by which point the condition had progressed considerably. On 25 October, the day after the closing of the [[1964 Summer Olympics]] in Tokyo, Ikeda announced his resignation. Hoping to avoid a vicious intra-party struggle to succeed him, Ikeda took the unusual step of personally designating [[Eisaku Satō]] as his successor. Ikeda's longstanding rival [[Ichirō Kōno]] respected his dying wish and declined to run for party president, clearing the way for Satō to succeed to the premiership.{{sfn|Kapur|2018|p=98}}

Although Ikeda was released from the hospital in December 1964, he underwent another operation at the University of Tokyo Hospital in August 1965. He died of [[pneumonia]] on 13 August, several days after the operation, at the age of 65.

Ikeda's "[[Kōchikai]]" faction was one of the most powerful factions in the LDP, and occupied the left wing of the party.<ref name=kitaoka>{{cite journal|last=Kitaoka|first=Shin’ichi|title=Japan's Dysfunctional Democracy|journal=Asia Program Special Report|date=January 2004|volume=117|pages=6–8|url=https://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/publication/Japan%20politics.pdf#page=6|access-date=28 February 2022}}</ref> As faction leader, he was succeeded in turn by [[Shigesaburō Maeo]], [[Masayoshi Ōhira]], [[Zenkō Suzuki]], [[Kiichi Miyazawa]], [[Koichi Kato (LDP)|Koichi Kato]], [[Mitsuo Horiuchi]], [[Makoto Koga]], and [[Fumio Kishida]].