Noboru Takeshita
Ito served as Foreign Minister from July 1980 to May 1981 in the cabinet of Zenko Suzuki. Ito developed a reputation as a "clean" and honest politician who did not become mired in scandals, and for this reason was suggested as a possible successor to Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita after he resigned in disgrace due to the Recruit scandal, although Ito expressed doubts about whether the LDP was serious about reform and declined.