JAPAN: PM May Renew Coalition w/Ishin After Landslide LDP Election Win (1/2)

In securinty the strongest-ever post-war result for the conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in the 8 Feb general election, PM Sanae Takaichi emerges from the campaign with the most significant mandate to bend Japan's political and economic direction to her will since her predecessor and mentor, the late Shinzo Abe, held office in the early/mid 2010s. The election was initially viewed as a gamble, with Takaichi an untested leader up against a potentially formidable opposition coalition that included the LDP's former allies, Komeito. 

• In the event, though, strong public support for Takichi personally, whose robust foreign policy stance and advocacy for fiscal stimulus measures saw approval ratings for her cabinet skyrocket, resulted in the LDP winning 316 seats alone. This crosses the two-thirds supermajority threshold that would enable the LDP to propose constitutional amendments and override votes in the House of Councillors. The Centrist Reform Alliance (CRA)'s lacklustre campaign and inability to motivate a largely older voter base (compared to the strong youth turnout for the LDP) saw the main opposition lose 123 seats, with a return of just 49 lawmakers.

Chart 1. 8 Feb General Election Result, Seats

Source: NHK, Ministry of Internal Affairs, MNI