The opposition thinks Mr Kan is flailing and his prime ministership, which was in trouble well before the earthquake, is in danger.
As a politician, Mr Smith was both ambitious and tactically shrewd, qualities that brought him to the prime ministership in 1964; but he lacked imagination.
Ms Tymoshenko has negatives too: a murky past in the gas industry, populist instincts that have damaged her prime ministership and a worrying lack of scruples.
To the joy of some 250m dalits, and the consternation of almost everybody else, Miss Mayawati hopes to claim the prime ministership for herself.