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© (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015.Abe's support slips to 32%
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© (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015.
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Yubaru
Like does anyone actually think that Abe cares what his ratings are? His actions are louder than his words.
BertieWooster
Now might be a good time for Abe to bring his planned increase in consumption tax.
It would be interesting to see what happens to his ratings then.
Single figures?
Wc626
Was there ever a PM who enjoyed popular ratings consistently? If so what were the key factors? It seems like japanese are always dissatisfied with their leaders for a while.
nath
Koizumi.
Kenny Iyekawa
"Only 26% of female voters backed his government compared to 40% of men."
Japanese women are more perceptive then men, clearly. They know the way the wind blows over Sea of Japan/East China sea
gogogo
Keep slipping out the door
tinawatanabe
PMs who prays at Yasukuni often can keep popular ratings for long historically like Koizumi, Nakasone, Sato, etc.
Wc626
Heh-heh. @tina. You just had to go there (Yasukuni Shrine). LoL, frankly I liked PM Mori . . . Who once said Japanese are a "divine" people.
kwatt
It seems that Abe doesn't listen to people and he likely wants to do what he wants. It make a sense that Abe's support rate delines further.
Meiyouwenti
Abe raised the consumption tax to 8pc ( another hike to 10pc is scheduled next year), while slashing corporate taxes. His policies have been favoring big companies and foreign investors at the expense of Japanese people.
It's a miracle that 32pc of the people are still supporting him.
elephant200
The ABEnomics just doesnt work for japanese public. But i doubt the mass population has a say over LDP policy
Christopher Glen
Looking good. Looking forward to seeing the numbers becoming smaller
katsu78
So here's my question: why aren't opposition parties capitalizing on this? Abe's numbers have been sliding for weeks. There is no reason to expect them to improve soon. Why aren't we hearing about alternatives to Abe's ideas?
gabrial888
Condoning Mori Yoshio's dirty practice of giving preferential treatment to Taisei Construction Companies and others to inflate the Olympic stadium bills is really bothering the people here. Boat and canoe venue's cost is now the SEVEN times that of the original estimate. How can this happen in a country that prides in accuracy and precision. Underestimating the construction cost is intentional and just shows how corrupt the ruling class here is. Abe is the part of this circle of tax money sucking ruling elite cronies in Japan. Japanese people are gradually awakening to this fact.
warispeace
I have wondered if hope is built into the human DNA, otherwise why would poor people the world over, with little possibility of betterment in their life, go to bed thinking tomorrow or in my next life things will improve. It is just irrational. It's the same when we look at elections in many countries. People choose a new leader with at least some hope, end up disappointed, toss him or her out and then quickly pin their hopes again on the next one. How many times does this cycle have to occur to wake us from irrational wishful thinking? But here we have the case of Japan, where people now appear to lack hope. It forces me to question my hypothesized connection between hope and DNA. In Japan the public has come to know that Abe and his policies are hopeless, unless one's an investing and corporate elite, and they also know that no new leader or opposition party is going to fulfill the many empty promises. In a sense it's almost refreshing to find a people who see life conditions as they are. I say almost refreshing because there is something romantic about people who struggle against hopelessness, not by pinning their hopes on some talking head politician but by doing the hard day-to-day work of trying to change their society from the bottom up, knowing this will take time and in the end things might get better or worse or both. Of course at some point politics comes into it and hard choices have to be made, but these includes being responsible to keep representatives in line. It's an active and open-eyed citizenship, not the resigned and hopeless one we find in Japan. 3.11 should have been a wake-up call, and for some it was, but not enough to bring about the kinds of changes that might give the hopeful real hope or even the doubtful reason to believe. Instead, more than ever the hopelessness here leads most to continue their escape into nationalism, consumerism and suicide.
sighclops
Well I don't like what Japan has become over the past few years & am going to leave for good next year. Been almost 10 years here, things are only getting worse. Much, much worse.
Drdolittle2
What difference does this support thing have on Abe san still staying in office...even if his support goes down to minus 32 he can still stay as Prime Minster and things in Japan will keep moving on, hardly has any difference about his support. And even if they were to change the top guy things in Japan will hardly change and life goes on.
smithinjapan
Abe's not giving a damn about the people is FINALLY starting to bite him in the backside... too little too late, but better late than never. Let's hope it continues to slide as his speech this Saturday will destroy any return to normalization between Japan and neighbours, as he continues to support fellow politicians who say certain newspapers should be censored or scrapped, as others deny history, as they spit on the people by turning on NPPs despite the opposition they VOWED would play a part in whether or not the NPPs were turned back on, they spit on women despite vowing that they would lead to more women in the workforce in Japan (there are now less in important roles than ever!), as 'Abenomics' (now no longer used in everyday parlance save for as a joke!) screwed everyone over except large corporations and the rich, as taxes sky-rocketed and the volume of food items decreased, etc.
Abe has been a disaster to this nation, and a major safety risk. Get him out, now!
elephant200
The people of Japan has quite a considerable resentment at US led wars! It is exactly opposite the result of passing that security bill in a rushing way. It is a very severe damage to Abe.
gokai_wo_maneku
I'm pretty sure that the 32% is everyone in Yamaguchi Prefecture, only.
doraemonchan
I do have some sympathy with him on economic or some gender correction issues. He could use his political capital more wisely than his revisionist instinct dictates.
AJSPeikaiwa
further evidence to support the theory of penis envy. and i am not basing this on the percent's attributed to the women.
itsonlyrocknroll
But that of the main opposition Democratic Party was just 9% .........Game over?
doraemonchan
Abenomics has put unemployment rate lower to the extent left in the market are those unskilled and discouraged, including women. The bottleneck, of course, is a lack of nursery school or skewed tax system and Abe has belatedly looked for solutions in what usually the left has in their closet. It's no surprise women don't support him. He is our Donald Trump but all I need is a result. Employment is a panacea to many social issues.
itsonlyrocknroll
Abe san is here to stay, there is no credible electable opposition either internally or externally.
itsonlyrocknroll
The electorate deserve a credible opposition with a manifesto that challenges Abe san LDP government.
An opposition that can present alternatives to security policy and intrusive government, An opposition that will push through economic reforms and encourage enterprise through aggressive removal of unnecessary bureaucracy.
One area is the constant pandering to creepy crawly vested invests that pop up left, right and center. Abe san is very effective in silencing, casting aside opposition within his own party, especially from the moderate political center ground.
Christopher Glen
True. He was worse than Abe in that he repeatedly went to Yasukuni. But he also had a certain "charisma", didn't bring in a secrecy law or amendment to article 9, and quit while he was ahead
25psot
Good citizen knows polls are opposition tools...
nath
In the absence of a viable opposition party or coalition, there is little hope of political or social change. As long as Abe heads the LDP, and the LDP holds a majority in the Diet, the country is stuck with him.