Tokyo. Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) won a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives in a general election on Sunday, giving PM Sanae Takaichi a mandate to pursue his conservative policies. Crossing the two-thirds majority of 310 seats in the 465-member lower house allows the LDP to make constitutional amendments and pass bills even if rejected by the upper house, where the ruling coalition is in a minority.
According to media reports, LDP is the first party to achieve such a majority in post-war Japan. The landslide victory increased the party’s pre-poll tally to 198 seats and is being attributed to Takaichi’s personal popularity. The LDP and its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party (JIP), will together have a strong presence in the House, further strengthening Takaichi’s position when he takes office in October. According to the report, in a television program after the announcement of victory, Takaichi said that it is our big responsibility to continuously focus on fulfilling the promises made during the election campaign. She also indicated that she would largely retain the current Cabinet, which has enjoyed relatively strong public support since being formed less than four months ago.
According to media reports, PM Narendra Modi heartily congratulated Japan’s PM Sanae Takaichi on her possible historic victory in the elections. He emphasized that India-Japan relations are of utmost importance for advancing global peace, stability and shared prosperity, and this is possible through a strong special strategic and global partnership. In a post on Twitter, PM Modi said that our special strategic and global partnership plays an important role in enhancing global peace, stability and prosperity. I am confident that under your capable leadership we will take India-Japan friendship to greater heights.
