Japanese prime minister's party secures supermajority

The governing party of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has secured a two-thirds supermajority in a key parliamentary election.

Japanese media reported preliminary results, earning Takaichi a landslide victory thanks to her popularity.

Takaichi, told public television network NHK she was now ready to pursue policies to make Japan strong and prosperous.

NHK said Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic Party, or LDP, alone secured 316 seats by early Monday, comfortably surpassing a 261-seat absolute majority in the 465-member lower house, the more powerful of Japan’s two-chamber parliament.

That marks a record since the party’s foundation in 1955 and surpasses the previous record of 300 seats won in 1986 by late prime minister Yasuhiro Nakasone.

With 36 seats won by its new ally, Japan Innovation Party, Takaichi’s ruling coalition has won 352 seats.

Despite the lack of a majority in the other chamber, the upper house, the huge jump from the pre-election share in the superior lower house would allow Takaichi to make progress on a right-wing agenda that aims to boost Japan’s economy and military capabilities as tensions grow with China and she tries to nurture ties with the United States.

Takaichi is hugely popular, but the governing LDP, which has ruled Japan for most of the last seven decades, has struggled with funding and religious scandals in recent years. She called Sunday’s early election only after three months in office, hoping to turn that around while her popularity is high.

The ultraconservative Takaichi, who took office as Japan’s first female leader in October, pledged to “work, work, work,” and her style has resonated with younger fans who say they weren’t previously interested in politics.

The opposition, despite the formation of a new centrist alliance and a rising far-right, was too splintered to be a real challenger.

The new opposition alliance of LDP’s former coalition partner, Buddhist-backed dovish Komeito, and the liberal-leaning Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, is projected to sink to half of their combined pre-election share of 167 seats.

Takaichi was betting with this election that her LDP party, together with its new partner, the JIP, would secure a majority

Trump in a post on his Truth Social platform Sunday congratulated Takaichi “on a LANDSLIDE Victory in today’s very important Vote. She is a highly respected and very popular Leader. Sanae’s bold and wise decision to call for an Election paid off big time.”

The prime minister wants to push forward a significant shift to the right in Japan’s security, immigration and other policies.

The LDP’s right-wing partner, JIP leader Hirofumi Yoshimura, has said his party will serve as an “accelerator” for this push.

Japan has recently seen far-right populists gain ground, such as the anti-globalist and surging nationalist party Sanseito. Exit polls projected a big gain for Sanseito.

The first major task for Takaichi when the lower house reconvenes in mid-February is to work on a budget bill, delayed by the election, to fund economic measures that address rising costs and sluggish wages.

Takaichi has pledged to revise security and defence policies by December to bolster Japan’s offensive military capabilities, lifting a ban on weapons exports and moving further away from the country’s postwar pacifist principles.

She has been pushing for tougher policies on foreigners, anti-espionage and other measures that resonate with a far-right audience, but ones that experts say could undermine civil rights.

Takaichi also wants to increase defence spending in response to Trump’s pressure for Japan to loosen its purse strings.

She now has time to work on these policies, without an election until 2028.

Though Takaichi said that she’s seeking to win support for policies seen as divisive in Japan, she largely avoided discussing ways to fund soaring military spending, how to fix diplomatic tension with China and other issues.

Takaichi also wants to push tougher measures on immigration, including stricter requirements for foreign property owners and a cap on foreign residents.

with Reuters