Japan’s ruling party could lose its parliamentary majority for the first time in 15 years, according to a poll carried out for the Nikkei and Yomiuri Shimbun newspapers ahead of the October 27 elections.
On October 9, Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba dissolved the lower house ahead of early parliamentary elections on October 27, hoping to lead his scandal-plagued party to victory. Ishiba was elected leader of the ruling party last month, succeeding Fumio Kishida, who in the summer announced his decision not to run for a new term.
According to the publication Nikkei, the Liberal Democratic Party may not secure the 233 seats necessary to maintain the much-coveted majority in the Lower House (465 seats). If this prediction comes true, it will be the first time since 2009 that the Liberal Democratic Party will lose absolute control of the Lower House. Even in this case, however, he could form a coalition government with the Komeito party as a partner.
Voting was carried out by telephone on Tuesday and Wednesday and was attended by 165,820 citizens.