The CRA and DPP declined to participate Thursday a panel on temporarily lifting the consumption tax on groceries, where political wrangling had been expected between the ruling and opposition parties. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/26/japan/politics/consumption-tax-panel/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #consumptiontax #taxes #ldp #jip #dpp #cra #teammirai #sanaetakaichi
Sanae Takaichi’s election win gives her the political capital to tackle Japan’s voting issues, including religious and union influence, foreign interference and proportional representation flaws. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/02/18/world/tackling-japans-political-taboos/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #worldnews #sanaetakaichi #japan #sokagakkai #komeito #ldp #rengo #cdp #china #ccp #diet #cra #jip #dpp #chinajapanrelations
Japan Innovation Party leader and Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura has indicated a possibility of returning to national politics. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/17/japan/politics/osaka-yoshimura-national-politics/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #hirofumiyoshimura #jip #osaka #2026lowerhouseelection #ldp
A proposal to reduce the number of seats in Japan's Lower House may be put on hold after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which houses deep-rooted opposition to the plan, won big in the chamber's election on Feb. 8. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/17/japan/politics/lower-house-cut-stall/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #lowerhouse #ldp #jip #sanaetakaichi
Members of the Japan Innovation Party have voted not to hold a leadership election despite the party's sluggish results in the Feb. 8 parliamentary election, allowing Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura to remain its leader. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/16/japan/politics/yoshimura-jip-leader-remain/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #hirofumiyoshimura #jip #ldp #osaka
Make no mistake, she and the LDP’s big win is attributable to her energy, her image and her vision. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/editorials/2026/02/13/takaichi-takes-command/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #editorials #sanaetakaichi #ldp #lowerhouse #jip #cdp #komeito #shinzoabe #china #taiwan #us #donaldtrump #xijinping #2026lowerhouseelection
Japan's Lower House has grown younger, with the average age of election winners being 54.7 years old. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/10/japan/politics/japan-lower-house-election-winners-average-age/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #2026lowerhouseelection #taroaso #nagisamuraki #ldp #jip #cra
The Liberal Democratic Party is on track for an overwhelming landslide victory in Japan’s Lower House election, NHK projections show. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/08/japan/politics/japan-2026-lower-house-election/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #2026lowerhouseelection #sanaetakaichi #ldp #jip #yoshihikonoda #cra #dpp #sanseito #jcp #reiwashinsengumi #teammirai
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has energized voters and strengthened the LDP ahead of a snap election, but her inexperience and ties to the Shinzo Abe faction pose risks for governance and public trust. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/editorials/2026/02/06/takaichi-ldp-poised-for-big-win/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #editorials #sanaetakaichi #ldp #jip #cra #cdp #komeito #shinzoabe #shigeruishiba #upperhouse #lowerhouse #2026lowerhouseelection
The new opposition centrist force that was supposed to upend Japan’s political calculus isn’t gaining any ground. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/02/04/japan/how-unpredictable-is-the-snap-election/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #ldp #cdp #komeito #cra #dpp #sanseito #jip #china #us #indopacific #eastasia #senkakus #xijinping #sanaetakaichi #2026lowerhouseelection #nipponishinnokai #diet
The Japanese parties that best navigate the shortened campaign period will cement their place in the new political landscape. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/02/04/japan/cheat-sheet-for-japans-snap-election/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #sanaetakaichi #ldp #cra #jip #2026lowerhouseelection #sanseito #dpp #diet
Japan’s Feb. 8 snap election will test whether Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and the LDP can rebuild a Lower House majority by reclaiming conservative and independent voters as it faces a fragmented opposition. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/02/03/japan/conservative-voters-returning-to-ldp/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #japan #sanaetakaichi #ldp #cdpj #komeito #cra #jip #dpp #sanseito #sokagakkai #rengo #shinzoabe
Japan’s Feb. 8 snap election is less about short-term politics than a pivotal choice among competing coalition paths that will determine whether the country can adapt its domestic politics to shifting voter behavior. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/02/03/japan/where-japan-goes-from-here/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #ldp #jip #cdp #komeito #cra #dpp #sanseito #china #unitedstates #indopacific #eastasia #senkakuislands #xijinping #sanaetakaichi #2026lowerhouseelection
Despite being coalition partners, the Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party are facing off against each other in all 19 single-seat constituencies of Osaka Prefecture in Sunday’s general election. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/03/japan/politics/japan-lower-house-election-osaka-ldp-jip/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #2026lowerhouseelection #osaka #ldp #jip #komeito
The political parties joining forces to form the the Centrist Reform Alliance are neither centrist nor true reformers. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/01/27/japan/japans-new-centrist-reform-alliance/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #centristreformalliance #cra #komeito #cdp #ldp #sanaetakaichi #tetsuosaito #dpj #yurikokoike #partyofhope #jip #sanseito #rengo #sokagakkai #dpp
Prime Minister Takaichi is advancing a more assertive security agenda, but insufficiently refined strategic signaling risks diplomatic friction and undermining the coherence and credibility of its foreign policy. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/01/22/japan/takaichis-strengths-and-strategic-signaling/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #sanaetakaichi #apec #southkorea #china #ldp #komeito #jip #taiwan #nuclearweapons #freeandopenindopacific #chinajapanrelations #usjapanrelations #defense
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is calling a snap election to seek a popular mandate for her leadership, but faces major challenges from opposition turnout machines and possible weak coordination within her own coalition. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/01/20/japan/takaichi-election-announcement/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #ldp #sanaetakaichi #2026lowerhouseelection #komeito #jip #cdp
Major political parties other than the Japan Innovation Party are expected to not participate in the upcoming double election for the governor of Osaka Prefecture and the mayor of Osaka, the prefecture's capital. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/18/japan/politics/osaka-double-election-candidates/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #osaka #hirofumiyoshimura #hideyukiyokoyama #jip
Japan's opposition politics remain fragmented as Komeito and the CDP merge to form a new party, despite policy divides and a history of electoral struggles. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/01/18/japan/japans-rare-snap-election/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #sanaetakaichi #ldp #komeitolowerhouse #komeito #cdp #centristreformalliance #cra #tetsuosaito #yoshihikonoda #sokagakkai #ccp #aeon #china #shinzoabe #fumiokishida #shigeruishiba #jip
Ruling and opposition parties clashed during a Sunday debate, a day ahead of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s widely expected announcement of a February snap election. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/18/japan/politics/japan-political-parties-tug-of-war/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #lowerhouse #ldp #jip #komeito #cdp #centristreformalliance #diet #sanaetakaichi