TOKYO, Feb 9: Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi won a landslide victory in the snap general election, with the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) led by her securing a two-thirds majority in the lower house with coalition partners.
Takaichi – who has the distinctive position of being the country’s first ever female premier – along with her allies, the Japanese Innovation Party (Ishin) secured an overwhelming 352 seat majority out of a total 465 seats, with the ruling party alone winning 316 seats, while the Ishin won 36 seats.
Despite snowfall kicking in, the voter turnout also saw a noticeable increase, with a record 55.68% of the population turning up to vote, with the newly-formed Centrist Reform Alliance (CRA – a merger between the Constitutional Democratic Party and Komeito – suffering a major political defeat, plummeting to just 49 seats from a pre-election combined total of 167.
With the ruling coalition securing an overwhelming representation in the lower house, Takaichi will now be able to override resistance in the upper chamber, giving her power to even amend Japan’s constitution – if she so chooses.
An unapologetic conservative, Takaichi, has consolidated support among the LDP’s conservative base by reviving long-dormant goals like revision to Japan’s pacifist constitution, aiming to reduce security dependency on the US, emphasising traditional values, improving the economy, and tackling the worrying problem of an ageing population.
(UNI)
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