Mari Yamaguchi
Tokyo: Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi dissolved the lower house of parliament on Friday, paving the way for an early election on February 8.
The move is an attempt to capitalise on her popularity to help the governing party regain ground after major losses in recent years, but it will delay parliamentary approval for a budget that aims at boosting a struggling economy and addressing soaring prices.
Elected in October as Japan’s first female leader, Takaichi has been in office only three months, but she has seen strong approval ratings of about 70 per cent.
Her Liberal Democratic Party could still face some challenges as it reels from a series of scandals about corruption and the party’s past ties to the Unification Church. But it’s not clear if the new opposition Centrist Reform Alliance can attract moderate voters, while opposition parties are still too splintered to a pose a serious threat to the LDP.
Takaichi is also seeing rising animosity with China, since making remarks on Taiwan. And US President Donald Trump wants her to spend more on weapons, as Washington and Beijing pursue military superiority in the region.
The dissolution of the 465-member lower House of Representatives paves the way for a 12-day campaign that officially starts on Tuesday. When Speaker Fukushiro Nukaga declared the dissolution, lawmakers stood up, shouted banzai – “long live” – three times and rushed out to prepare for the campaign.
Hopes for a majority
Takaichi’s plan for an early election aims to capitalise on her popularity to win a governing majority in the lower House, the more powerful of Japan’s two-chamber parliament called the National Diet.
The scandal-tainted LDP and its coalition had a slim majority in the lower House after an election loss in 2024. The coalition lacks a majority in the upper House of Councillors and relies on winning votes from opposition members to pass its agenda.
Opposition leaders criticised Takaichi for delaying passage of a budget needed to fund key economic measures.
“I believe that the only option is for the people, as sovereign citizens, to decide whether Sanae Takaichi should be prime minister,” she told a news conference Monday when announcing plans for the election. “I’m staking my career as prime minister” on it.
Takaichi, a hard-line conservative, wants to highlight differences with her centrist predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba.
Takaichi stresses that voters need to judge her fiscal spending moves, further military buildup and tougher immigration policies to make Japan “strong and prosperous.”
While an upbeat and decisive image has earned her strong approval ratings and fans of her personal style, the LDP isn’t popular as it recovers from a political funds scandal. Many traditional LDP voters have shifted to emerging far-right populist opposition parties, such as the anti-globalist Sanseito.
China, Trump and corruption scandals
Meanwhile, Japan faces escalating tensions with China after Takaichi made remarks suggesting that Japan could become involved if China takes military action against Taiwan, a self-governing island that Beijing claims as its own. A furious China has increased economic and diplomatic retribution.
Takaichi wants to push further a military buildup and spending increases, while Trump has pressured Japan to spend more on defence.
Divided opposition
Takaichi says she needs a mandate to push policies she’s agreed on with her new coalition partner, the right-wing Japan Innovation Party, or JIP. They struck a deal in October to pursue goals that include a stronger military, continuing male-only imperial succession, and accelerating the reactivation of offline nuclear reactors.
Takaichi struck a deal with the JIP after the LDP’s longtime ally Komeito, a Buddhist-backed centrist party, left the governing bloc over her ideological views and reluctance to pursue anti-corruption measures. With the new partner’s help, she secured just enough votes to become prime minister.
Komeito turned to the main liberal-leaning opposition, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, to form the Centrist Reform Alliance just in time for the election.
“Now is our chance to start the centrist movement,” said Yoshihiko Noda, a former prime minister and leader of the Constitutional Democrats.
He said the new alliance seeks to achieve a diverse, gender equal and inclusive society with “people-first politics,” speaking at joint news conference with co-leader Tetsuo Saito, head of Komeito.
As divisions and confrontations spread globally and economic disparity widens at home, the new group is promising a “realistic” security policy and efforts to achieve a nuclear weapons-free world.
Opposition groups in Japan are seen as too splintered to win an election, and so far, polling for the alliance isn’t promising. But Komeito’s ability to turn out votes from the Soka Gakkai sect makes it a force to be reckoned with.
Takaichi’s promises
Takaichi is focusing on the economy, looking to attract voters with measures to address rising prices and stagnant wages, as well as support for low-income households.
But the security hawk has also pledged to revise security and defence policies to further strengthen the military, and to eliminate arms export restrictions to allow more sales and develop the Japanese defence industry.
Her party is also vowing tougher immigration rules and restrictions on foreigners living in Japan to address growing anti-foreign sentiment. Earlier this week, the LDP proposed new immigration policies including tougher requirements for foreign property owners and a cap on the number of foreign residents in Japan.
AP
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