Sanae Takaichi’s L.D.P. Secures Absolute Majority Amid Heavy Snow

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was on course for a big win in a snap parliamentary election, with NHK’s analysis giving her Liberal Democratic Party at least 234 seats, up from 198. That outcome would hand the party an absolute majority in the 465-member House of Representatives and remove the need for a coalition.

Voters across Japan braved snowstorms, ice and frigid temperatures to cast ballots, but the heavy snowfall forced many polling stations to open late or close early; the government said about 40 percent of stations shut earlier than planned. Turnout stood at 26.01 percent two hours before polls closed, a decline of nearly three percentage points from the 2024 lower house election, and the storms have been deadly—at least 46 people killed and 500 injured.

Ms. Takaichi called the snap vote to strengthen her power three months after she was elected, as Japan confronts rising costs of living, pressure from the Trump administration to boost military spending and a strained relationship with an assertive China.

Japan

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