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Japan's ruling camp lost its majority in the House of Representatives in Sunday's election, dealing a heavy blow to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba who must now look for additional support outside the coalition to run a stable government.
Ishiba, however, voiced eagerness to form a new government led by his party. Opposition parties, composed of both liberal and right-leaning forces, are also expected to struggle to cooperate in forming a coalition due to differences in their policy goals.
The dismal results underscored deepening distrust in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party due to a slush funds scandal, signaling a seismic shift in the support that enabled it to return to power in 2012 after a spell in opposition.
The coalition would still fall short of a majority in the powerful lower house even if Ishiba accepts back into the LDP former party lawmakers who ran as independents after being denied LDP endorsement over the scandal. The party fell short of 200 seats in the 465-member chamber.
The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, which had presented itself as an alternative to a ruling party seen as awash in "secret money," saw a substantial increase in seats as it aims to bring about a change of government.
The LDP-Komeito coalition missed its goal of crossing the majority line of 233 in the lower house, having held a combined 288 seats before the election.
The post-election outlook is uncertain, with some major opposition parties that made notable gains rejecting the possibility of joining a government with the ruling bloc.
A grim-looking Ishiba described the election results as "tough" as they came in. "We were far from gaining the public's understanding" over the slush funds scandal, Ishiba said. The LDP chief expressed hope to keep leading the government to promote the coalition's policies.
His gambit to dissolve the powerful chamber only eight days after taking office on Oct 1 and call an election backfired.
The LDP's woes deepened in the final days of the campaign after it was revealed that the party had provided 20 million yen each to local chapters headed by some scandal-hit, unendorsed candidates. Opposition leaders quickly ramped up criticism, accusing the ruling party of covertly supporting the candidates.
Komeito chief Keiichi Ishii, who took the post only a month ago, lost his seat, becoming the first head of the coalition partner to suffer a defeat since 2009. The party backed by the lay-Buddhist organization Soka Gakkai, which held 32 seats before the election, lost around 10 of them.
Farm minister Yasuhiro Ozato was defeated by his opposition party rival. Justice Minister Hideki Makihara also lost his seat.
The CDPJ, meanwhile, secured over 140 seats, up sharply from 98. "Voters chose which party would be the best fit to push for political reforms. That's why we've received this much support," said CDPJ chief Yoshihiko Noda.
Political observers have suggested that the LDP might accept back into the party those who were denied endorsements due to their involvement in underreporting income from fundraising events.
Still, former education minister Hakubun Shimomura, along with about half of the some 10 who were denied endorsement, lost their seats. All the candidates who were forced to run as independents had close ties with the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who exerted significant influence over the LDP even after his stepping down as leader in 2020.
Another option for the ruling coalition would be to seek cooperation from the Democratic Party for the People, which saw its seats more than quadruple from seven.
The party's leader, Yuichiro Tamaki, however, has rejected the idea of joining the ruling coalition, while the Japan Innovation Party, another opposition force, is also negative about working with the LDP-Komeito group.
Voter turnout stood at 53.81 percent, according to a Kyodo News estimate, around 2 percentage points lower than in the previous election in 2021 and likely the third lowest in the postwar era. The number of female lawmakers reached 55, a record high.
In Sunday's election, each voter cast two ballots -- one to choose a candidate in a single-seat constituency and the other to select a party in the proportional representation section. The final election results are expected to be clear by early Monday.
Ishiba has pledged to prioritize easing the negative impact of inflation on households, bolstering Japan's defenses against security threats from its neighbors and enhancing regional economies and disaster resilience.
The deepening funds scandal has continued to haunt the LDP since it emerged in late 2023, driving down public support to levels that ultimately forced Ishiba's predecessor Fumio Kishida to give up on seeking reelection as party chief.
The lower house election results will pose a daunting challenge for Ishiba as he seeks to rebuild the LDP before the House of Councillors election next summer.
Analysts also say the election outcome will make it almost impossible for Ishiba to fulfill his key promise of initiating a proposal to revise the country's Constitution through parliament before a national referendum, which requires approval by a two-thirds majority in parliament.
© KYODO
34 Comments
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kurisupisu
Could it finally be that the Japanese people are finally starting to see the wood for the trees?
koiwaicoffee
The picture says it all..
robert maes
So even the Japanese can one day have enkugh. There is a little hope yet
sakurasuki
What is urgency for that?
Also what will happen to happiness index.
https://fortune.com/asia/2024/10/03/japan-new-prime-minister-shigeru-ishiba-propose-happiness-index/
koiwaicoffee
Specially that chair top covers! Everything in that room is still in the 1970s.
Peter Neil
the country is like a car stuck even more in mud
awomde
It's Sanae time!
dagon
That was the standout for me about the election coverage and kudos to some Japanese MSM for making a point of it.
Having all these LDP politicians running, many who still won besides the large fraudulent sums they accumulated showed the absurdity of the LDP hegemony.
Likes the small Reiwa performing strong.
obladi
This election reflects people’s indifference and fatigue with the LDP, but does not yet signal a way forward.
We need someone who can articulate a new vision for Japan.
Some dude
The future seems to be tough to predict. But as long as there are lame fist pumps, there is hope.
wallace
A shocking outcome for the government. Can they continue?
voiceofokinawa
The LDP government met with voters' angry hammer. The catch, however, is that the voter turnout was a mere 25%. Is democracy working here?
falseflagsteve
Yen is falling already, what a ghastly mess.
Rakuraku
It may seem like a step in the right direction; unfortunately, with the CDP lacking an absolute majority (unlike the DPJ in 2009), it’s likely just going to be a big mess.
Hito Bito
"We were far from gaining the public's 'understanding'", says the hapless, unliked Ishiba. NO. The public understood very well that as soon as the election was over, those caught breaking the law in your party would be welcomed back as "valued" members with ZERO consequences.
Unfortunately, the Opposition is so weak and such a hodgepodge of characters and beliefs, that the LDP will get first crack at forming government again, hence Ishiba's refusal to take responsibility for his failure to keep even his first promise to the people. Rather than resign, he's planning to stick around. This, too, the public "understands".
Sven Asai
Exactly, and I said it before. But as usual they don't listen and prefer continuing to gamble everything away.
kibousha
Finally, we've driven out soka cult and corrupt jimin out of Osaka.
didou
@voiceofokinawa
The total turnout is 53.81%, as written in the article.
Low still. About 20% did vote during the previous two weeks.
wallace
Turn out was about 53%.
Aly Rustom
Good news
socrateos
wallace:
That's not too bad, and it's about same as US presidential election turn out.
1984 53.3%
1988 50.3%
1992 55.2%
1996 49.0%
2000 50.5%
2004 55.7%
2008 57.1%
2012 53.8%
2016 54.8%
2020 62.8%
cleo
He was right. Those who didn’t understand either voted for the LDP regardless, or didn’t even bother to vote, thus allowing the Corruption Party to get only a little short of a majority. An understanding of the situation should have seen the LDP relegated ignominiously to the also-rans, not contemplating which minor party/parties they can bribe to join them and keep them in power.
The so-called opposition parties need to get their act together and give voters an viable alternative.
Invalid CSRF
Still haven’t got this fixed?
Derek Grebe
Just look at the raw animal charisma oozing from every pore of that dynamic bunch.
Oh my…
And it looks like the only way to cling to power is to reinstate the very few apparatchiks who were even too flagrantly corrupt for the LDP. So the message is “help yourself to every yen you can bilk out of people and even if we put you on the naughty step for a while, we’ll take good care of you after a short period of penance”.
dan
@cleo spot on!
Hello Kitty 321
At least the Jiminto will no longer be able to rule by decree (kakugi kettei) and will have to debate policies in the house in proper democratic fashion
Nibek32
Jiminto have a horrible track record, not to mention they are notorious for financial scandals.
Based on the age of these folks and their supporters, they are dying off.
GBR48
Surprising. The best outcome from here is not a bodged coalition based on quid-pro-quo favours, but for only initiatives that have cross-party support to be do-able, on a vote-by-vote basis.
Desert Tortoise
The charisma of a politician is of no importance to me. What matters are their honesty, competence, policy ideas and values. Having said that there is still not much to recommend among those in the image.
justasking
Patriarchal gerontocracy. It makes me wanna puke.
Aoi Azuuri
Present ruling party LDP seems to have plan to pull far-right opposition party National "Democratic" Party into ruling party to maintain regime.
But they "NDP" insists even euthanasia for the purpose of reducing social security cost during this election campaigning, it's like geronticide or eugenics thought under totalitarianism, more boosts dividing citizen or society.
happyhere
Koizumi sticks out like a sore thumb in that photo. Time for him and the other non-geriatrics to jump ship and join the CDP.
koiwaicoffee
Koizumi is just waiting for the others in the pic to die to grab his inheritance.
ok1517
Positive point:
Soka Gakkai lost quite some power!
mountainpear
@awomde Takaichi? You must be joking!