Japan’s ruling coalition secures majority in lower house election

Japan's ruling coalition led by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) secured a majority in the House of Representatives election held on Sunday, public broadcaster NHK reported.

Vote counting data showed the LDP won 316 seats, while its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party (JIP), secured 36 seats.

Before the election, the ruling coalition held 232 seats in the lower house — 198 for the LDP and 34 for the JIP.

The result gives the LDP alone more than the two-thirds majority threshold of 310 seats in the 465-member lower house, marking the first time in the postwar period that a single party has crossed the line. It enables the party to move toward constitutional amendments and enact legislation even if it is rejected by the House of Councillors, where the ruling coalition remains in the minority.

On the opposition side, the newly formed Centrist Reform Alliance, created by the Constitutional Democratic Party and Komeito, won 49 seats. The Democratic Party for the People secured 28 seats, the Sanseito party 15 seats, the emerging Future Team party 11, and the Japanese Communist Party four seats.

NHK estimated voter turnout in Sunday's lower house election at about 55.68%, up from 53.85% in the previous general election in 2024.

A total of 1,284 candidates ran for the 465 seats in the House of Representatives, including 289 in single-seat constituencies and 176 through proportional representation across 11 regional blocs.

According to Nikkei Asia, the LDP's two-thirds majority will make it easier for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to push ahead with her "responsible and proactive fiscal policy" agenda aimed at tackling the cost-of-living crisis and promoting strategic investment.

Japanese stocks surged about 5% on Monday morning, while the yen weakened, after Takaichi's landslide victory.

houjunjie@chinadaily.com.cn