TOKYO, Sept. 17 (Xinhuanet) -- Seiji Maehara, a conservative 43-year-old, on Saturday became leader of Japan's largest opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), narrowly defeating former leader Naoto Kan in a two-man race held after the party's rout in last Sunday's general election.

    Of the party's 194 lower and upper house lawmakers, 192 cast votes and Maehara defeated the 58-year-old Kan 96-94. Two votes were declared invalid.

    The results highlighted a sense of crisis within the seven-year-old party, which is staking its reconstruction on generational change, rather than depending on a seasoned veteran.

    "I'll work on rebuilding the party and making democracy in Japan functional," Maehara said at a news conference after winningthe election.

    Maehara said he will work to stop wasting taxpayer money and make the government more effective while boosting "safety-net" measures to help various kinds of people in trouble in Japan's graying society.

    Nominated as the Defense Agency chief in the party's shadow cabinet, Maehara is known for his in-depth knowledge of diplomacy and security policies and conservative position in the DPJ.

    But critics question Maehara's clout in Japan's second-largest party after Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) as he has taken no key party post other than acting secretary general.

    Maehara will serve the remainder of former leader Katsuya Okada's two-year term, which expires in September 2006.

    He said he will enhance the DPJ's ability to present counterproposals to the government and would not make the DPJ the sort of opposition party that is blindly opposed to government-ledmeasures.

    Dismissing looming concern among some DPJ lawmakers that some DPJ policies may become similar to those of Koizumi's LDP, Maeharasaid the two parties are totally different.

    Maehara said the LDP backs a government that wastes tax money and leaves various vested interests between politicians and industry untouched, but that the DPJ aims to create a refurbished government.

    The DPJ is dubbed "a hotchpotch" of politicians with various political positions. DPJ lawmakers include defectors from both theLDP and its one-time rival the Japan Socialist Party, the Social Democratic Party's predecessor.

    Maehara expressed willingness to compile a draft of the DPJ's own on constitutional revision, saying he personally thinks the text of the war-renouncing Article 9 should be partly amended.

    The constitutional provision that Japan should not keep military forces and the right of belligerency of the state not being recognized should be removed, Maehara said.

    But critics said a focus will be on to what extent Maeharahe isable to have a say with authorities in the sectors of diplomacy and security.

    Maehara, a former Kyoto prefectural assembly member, has servedas acting secretary general of the DPJ. He has been elected to thelower house five times since 1993.

    The party presidential election was held after the DPJ lost 64 seats in the 480-seat lower house, while the LDP captured 296 seats against the DPJ's 113.

    The resignation of Okada, 52, was endorsed by the party Thursday and took effect Saturday.

    Some DPJ lawmakers called on the leadership to throw open the vote to the party's supporters as has been done in the past, saying the party needs to rebuild from scratch after the major setback in the election. The DPJ last held such an election in September 2002.

    But DPJ executives stopped short of agreeing to the request, saying they had no time to organize such an election because the party needs to quickly pick a new leader before the next parliamentary session starts Wednesday.

    Okada was also chosen in an election involving only DPJ lawmakers in May last year. Enditem