Japan faces political uncertainty after LDP election rout

Japan's long-dominant Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) suffered a resounding defeat in Sunday's election for the lower house of Parliament, the Diet, leaving Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba looking for new political allies.

The LDP lost 65 seats, leaving the party with just 191 seats and well short of the 233 it required for a simple majority in the chamber. Its coalition partner, the Buddhist-backed Komeito, lost eight seats to give it a new total of 24, still insufficient to give the partners a majority.

Although opposition parties fared well, the lack of ideological unity among numerous small parties and independent politicians means it will be hard to form a coalition right now that could replace the LDP.

The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP) picked up 50 seats to give it a total of 148. However, no party won a clear majority, and Ishiba's weakened coalition is now unable to push ahead with a legislative agenda.

Japan voters 'frustrated' amid financial scandal

After the election results became clear on Sunday, Ishiba said voters had handed his party a "severe judgement."

Ishiba had called for the snap election just weeks after taking office in response to sluggish approval ratings amid a financial scandal involving LDP politicians.

"It is clear that the electorate is deeply frustrated and angry over the scandal of LDP politicians amassing huge slush funds," said Hiromi Murakami, a professor of political science at the Tokyo campus of Temple University.

Dozens of LDP politicians and accountants have been implicated in the scandal, which broke last year and involves some 600 million yen (€3.62 million, $3.93 million) in undocumented political funding, kickbacks, and undeclared income. 

The issue badly hurt the administration of former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who ended up stepping down.

 Ishiba was elected in his place on October 1 in large part due to his promise to root out anyone involved in the scandal.

One promise that Ishiba made was that the party would not financially support the re-election campaigns of any politicians linked to the scandal.

However, it was reported that despite Ishiba's vows, the party had been funding disgraced members' campaigns, which sparked public anger at Ishiba and the LDP.

"To say that people were disappointed would be a huge understatement," Murakami told DW. "And coming so close to the election, I think it was a significant factor. The LDP just failed to understand the depth of people's feelings about the issue."

Of the 46 politicians linked to the slush funds scandal, 28 lost their seats in Sunday's election.

Ishiba on Monday vowed to carry on as prime minister and promised to carry out "fundamental reforms" of the party to deal with corruption, although efforts to reach out to possible coalition partners had made little initial headway.

"I have been hearing that the LDP intends to carry on, even if it does not have a majority, and will work with parties individually to pass legislation on a case-by-case basis," Murakami said.

"Obviously that is going to be difficult and time-consuming, but as the opposition is not united, it is still a chance for the LDP to stay in power," she added.

Opposition intends to score points

Yoshihiko Noda, the leader of the CDP, has indicated that he plans to make additional political headway as a result of the slush funds scandal, saying he wants to reduce the LDP to minority status. He has called for any politicians implicated in the scandal to appear before the Diet's political ethics committee.

As well as increasing the likelihood of paralysis in the Diet, the election has given a new voice to small opposition parties with populist and extremist policies.

Similar to what has been seen in many European countries, parties to the far left and right have picked up support from voters who say they're frustrated by the failure of mainstream parties to address their concerns and improve the quality of their lives.

One of these parties is the right-wing Sanseito party, which opposed COVID vaccination and is now demanding a sharp increase in defense spending, a ban on same-sex marriages and education reforms to promote traditional Japanese values.

Japan's right parties emerge

The Japan Conservative Party is even newer, having only being set up in September 2023, but which won three seats on Sunday.

Yoichi Shimada, a retired academic, won one of the seats in the proportional representation vote and said he shifted his political allegiances away from the LDP because it has become too "weak-kneed."

"After the tragic death of [former Prime Minister] Shinzo Abe, my impression has been that the LDP has become more liberal," he told DW.

Shimada said he takes issue with the LDP on everything from encouraging the development of green sources of energy to the way in which history is taught in Japanese schools.

"One of the reasons I decided to run in this election is because I want to bring about a change in the political atmosphere in Japan from the conservative side."

Edited by: Wesley Rahn