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© 2021 AFPJapan votes as ruling party seeks fresh start
By Hiroshi HIYAMA and René SLAMA TOKYO©2025 GPlusMedia Inc.
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© 2021 AFP
48 Comments
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Good
Thanks for fixing your mask. I will now allow you a short term victory.
0rei0
A fresh start? The LDP?? long-ruling conservatives- More like long in the tooth conservatives, totally unwilling to change, I'll wager.
sakurasuki
At least they'll do some rebranding but anything nothing change
Tom Doley
Fresh start? Next propaganda please.
kibousha
Funny how all these LDP candidates promises "reform". They've been ruling all these years through the deflations, why didn't they reform ? They were the majority after all! It's because they can't, factions within factions, infighting. Anyone picking the LDP pretty much decided they rather stop thinking.
snowymountainhell
2nd election weekend edition in a row where only one particular party’s member is depicted?
snowymountainhell
Of course, the Mon a.m. edition will always highlight the “crazy” candidates from the margins after the election amongst the stories of Halloween antics in Shibuya.
Bob Fosse
Some real dunces running for (re) election. Our local character’s main pledge is to make plastic bags free again.
Mark
Can't vote, but I hope all goes well with who ever wins. Good Luck Japan.
vanityofvanities
I am paying attention to Amari who is the LDP manager but is reportedly at risk to be reelected from Kanagawa electoral district 13.
Kyo wa heiwa dayo ne
This article is dissapointg.
And a honeymoon refers to a month of drinking mead/ honey wine and fornicating for a whole month.It has diddly squat to do with any electoral process or politics whatsoever !
Kishida plans are definitely a revolving door of vague uncertainty and stupendous promises of a sensational and monumental myopic vision for Japan's future.
He can cover his nose with a mask but can't find a suit jacket that fits long arms
garypen
A "fresh start" with the same old grumpy faces in the cabinet that are always there, none of whom are actually qualified for their posts, just shuffled around in a periodic game of musical chairs.
Beto Ramirez
It’s Halloween and the LDP members are dressing up as honest people. Hopefully, the voters can see through the lies and vote more of these people out of their positions. It’s only a fresh start of the 自由飲酒党 loses. Good luck to the non LDP members
Jacko
Alexa, define "fresh".
Mickelicious
A bit late, as this is being flaunted left right and centre.
As long as the plastic bag has no handles, it's not a レジ袋, right?
warispeace
Fresh like my socks after a game of soccer, are the LDP, which have manage to take Japan from the top of OECD positive social indicators for a healthy society to near the bottom, competing with Greece. So let's elect the same lot and expect something different.
Read this to mean a new package of corporate welfare handouts, as part of the ongoing class war, that will just increase the wealth gap. An example is an increase in spending to boost the profits of companies in the war industry sector.
Read this to mean, a rebranding of Abenomics and the neoliberal policies that have a led to a huge increase in the number of working poor and a rise in precarious work.
Cricky
Just leave me and my family alone, do that I’d be happy to vote.
Kyo wa heiwa dayo ne
Fresh like natto.
Stinky gooey and full of hot air
Yotomaya
The headline is nothing but clickbait (worked on me though). No-one is gullible enough to think that the few months of Kishida's tenure have anything to do with a "fresh start". That's literally the opposite of what the LDP stands for. In the very likely event that they don't get voted out, the will continue with their neoliberal business as usual.
snowymountainhell
Still @Yotomaya 12:02pm it is impressive that JT did change their accompanying photo to a more impartial, general photo based on earlier comments!
Photo Updated 10:36am: “A voter casts a ballot in the lower house election at a polling station in Tokyo on Sunday. Photo: AP/Eugene Hoshiko
smithinjapan
Oh, please! Fresh start at what? doing the same thing?
DNALeri
A nail-biting election?
blahblah222
LDP have historical support margin lead over opposition parties. I predict a LDP landslide and ruling coalition 2/3 majority. I doubt LDP would lose any seats.
spinningplates
There's absolutely zero chance of change.
Some of our friends who are young and will vote are going LDP....because 'They are powerful'....and that's all.
Hito Bito
"New Capitalism" sounds like another "Three Arrows" to me.
Unfulfillable promises still win parliament seats, though. Just ask the eternal-name-changing Opposition party, who are also serially guilty of making eternal promises they cannot possibly hope to deliver.
("Fresh start! We were New Party Sakigake and Socialists, now we're called the Democrat Party...Fresh Start! Now we're the Democratic Party of Japan...Fresh Start! Now we're the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan...next election...Fresh Start??" Same people, same predictable policy promises!)
Plus what with the rain, and being Halloween, and bedridden Governor Koike's party suddenly pulling out of the race for not "being ready enough"...seems like this might be the type of election in which only the "base" reliably turn out. (And typically. the LDP/Komeito have a larger, more-reliable base).
ulysses
Around 17% of people have voted at 13:00 In Tokyo, so voters don’t look too excited. Hopefully it picks up by evening!
geronimo2006
Put together a few catchy empty slogans - win election - then later, at a fancy ginza restaurant or bar, find out from the oyaji overlords what to do.
paddletime
a sad and pathetic joke is what the whole situation is
itsonlyrocknroll
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party have had more fresh starts than a J league football club.
Political inertia, ground hog day, for the foreseeable future.
Only three of my younger family members are bothering to vote, the majority enjoying a BBQ.
They might as well be throwing there futures over the fire and smoke.
Simon Foston
blahblah222Today 01:14 pm JST
Why's that? No one else seems to think so.
sf2k
you can't be the incumbent and seek a fresh start. That's not how this works
blahblah222
Just look at the party support data trends.
https://www.tv-asahi.co.jp/hst/poll/graph_seitou.html
The media and pollsters have no idea what they are talking about when they are predicting LDP would lose seats. They are just trying to make it seem like there's a competition for the foreign press imo. It will be a crushing victory for the LDP. With the turnout seemingly lower, LDP should be winning big and undoubtedly take more than 2/3 of the seats.
LDP supporters are always more loyal and will come out to vote. Opposition parties have barely any base supporters and would struggle to get anyone to vote for them.
archmiel
I was out voting and in my neck of the woods NHK was there at the exit trying to accost people. Not for filming, either. They asked me which announcer I liked the best (!?). I was confused but it was raining so I didn't stick around longer than I had to.
Alfie Noakes
Old wine in an old bottle. Stagnation, incompetence, lies, corruption, failure, decline; that's the fresh start.
Sven Asai
Not even eligible to vote has the advantage of not at all being responsible for the outcome. lol
Simon Foston
blahblah222Today 04:35 pm JST
Just look at the party support data trends.
https://www.tv-asahi.co.jp/hst/poll/graph_seitou.html
Why do you trust the poll you've pasted a link to and not any other ones?
Why would they bother?
With an extremely bland, newly-appointed prime minister who just spouts platitudes, a nine-year record of scandals, mismanagement and incompetence, and opposition parties coordinating their efforts, I think an LDP landslide is extremely unlikely.
TARA TAN KITAOKA
Fresh start??? Does the politicians means that they were not working at all???
englisc aspyrgend
Simon Foston, in any other country I would agree with you wholeheartedly but Japan? Hmmmmm?
kurisupisu
“A fresh start” - for whom?
yoshichuta@icloud.com
Depending on Amari elected or not eventually fresh start means
Jim
Fresh start with same old policies…lol !