Date of birth: April 30, 1962

Party: Democratic Party of Japan

Electoral district: Lower House; Kyoto No. 2 (sixth term)

Maehara served as transport minister under Yukio Hatoyama and in Naoto Kan's first Cabinet. He backed Kan in the DPJ presidential election earlier this week.

As transport minister, he has dealt with tough issues, including the Japan Airlines bankruptcy. He has also come up with bold policies, such as converting Tokyo's Haneda airport into a 24-hour international hub and cutting the public works budget by some 18 percent.

Maehara is a vocal critic of DPJ kingpin Ichiro Ozawa and has openly criticized him over his money scandals and his decision to challenge Kan. He is known as a strong supporter of the Japan-U.S. security alliance and has lashed out at Ozawa's desire to put Tokyo on a more independent path from Washington.

He started his political career in the Kyoto Prefectural Assembly.