Japan’s LDP Set to Win Majority in Lower House Race

Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, is on track to secure a majority in Sunday’s House of Representatives election, winning 233 or more of the 465 seats at stake, according to the latest Kyodo News survey, Mainichi Japan reported.

The LDP holds the upper hand in around 180 of the 289 single-member constituencies. (Photo: Cabinet Secretariat) 

The main opposition Centrist Reform Alliance is expected to perform poorly, while the LDP’s junior coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, and the Democratic Party for the People are also projected to lose seats.

Smaller parties such as Sanseito, a populist group promoting a “Japanese First” platform, are expected to make gains, while Team Mirai, which advocates technological reforms to Japan’s political system, could win seats for the first time.

The situation remains fluid, as about 20% of respondents in the three-day telephone survey conducted since Saturday—covering roughly 194,000 eligible voters—remain undecided.

The LDP holds the upper hand in around 180 of the 289 single-member constituencies, compared with 138 before official campaigning began.

It is also expected to win about 70 seats through proportional representation, up from the 60 it previously held.

The Japanese Communist Party is on course to retain its eight seats, while the anti-establishment Reiwa Shinsengumi, which previously held eight seats, may retain only one at best.