The oct 27th snap election brought unexpected changes to Japans political scene as the long-dominant Liberal Democratic Party lost its firm grip on power. Shigeru Ishibaʼs first major test as prime-minister turned into a night-mare when LDP and its partner Komeito failed to keep their majority
In a shocking turn-of-events‚ LDP secured just 191 seats (23% less than before) while their Buddhist-backed ally Komeito dropped to mere 24 seats; its leader didnt even win his own district. This outcome hits especially hard for Ishiba who finally got the top job after 5 tries in 16 yrs
The political shake-up came after previous leader Kishidas exit due to fund-raising issues: LDP found that 85 law-makers didnt report about 580 million yen in party-ticket sales over 4 years. Such money-related problems arent new in Japan — even the well-known Shinzo Abe dealt with similar issues before his tragic death about 2 years ago
The Constitutional Democratic Party made big gains reaching 148 seats; which puts them in striking-distance of forming government. Led by ex-prime minister Yoshihiko Noda CDP supports letting women keep their surnames after marriage and wants to fix wealth gaps
- Defense spending increase to match NATO levels
- Growing ties with US and other nations
- Strong stance against Russia-China-North Korea group
- Support for Ukraine
- Better relations with South-East Asian countries
This political uncertainty comes at a tricky time for Japan — as it tries to build-up its defense and strengthen global partnerships. The next few weeks will show if Ishiba can keep his position or if Japan will see yet another leadership change when parliament meets on nov 11th to pick new prime-minister