TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s ruling party, plagued by a major slush fund scandal, lost all three seats in midterm parliamentary elections on Sunday, a major setback for the prime minister. Fumio Kishida in his quest for re-election as leader of his party in the fall.
The loss is seen by voters as punishment for the Liberal Democratic Party scandal that erupted last year and undermined Kishida’s leadership. However, the party’s loss of power is unlikely because the opposition is divided.
“The results were extremely serious,” LDP Secretary General Toshimitsu Motegi told reporters. “We humbly accept the serious consequences, and we will do our utmost to regain public trust as we continue our efforts to reform and address the challenges.”
The liberal-leaning main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan won all three seats in Shimane, Nagasaki and Tokyo, according to final vote counts on the websites of the prefectural election commissions.
The LDP previously held all three vacant seats. It did not field its own candidates for the Tokyo and Nagasaki midterm elections due to apparently low support for the party. Instead, it focused on defending the Shimane District seat left vacant by the death of former LDP House of Representatives Speaker Hiroyuki Hosoda, who was linked to a number of alleged irregularities, including the ongoing slush fund scandal.
Akiko Kamei, the CDPJ candidate who defeated former Finance Ministry bureaucrat Norimasa Nishikori of the LDP in Shimane, said her victory in the district known as a “conservative kingdom” sent a big message to Kishida. “I believe voters’ anger over the LDP slush fund problem and the lack of improvement in daily life in the prefecture have become support for me,” she said.
CPDJ leader Kenta Izumi said the by-elections were about political reforms. “There are many voters across the country who also want to express (similar) views,” he said, adding that he will seek early national elections if reforms by the ruling party are too slow.
The losses could reduce Kishida’s influence as LDP lawmakers could try to take him down and give him a new face ahead of the next general election. Such a move would dash Kishida’s hopes of entering the party’s presidential race in September for another three-year term. As prime minister, he can call early elections at any time before the current term for the lower house expires in October 2025.
Kishida has battled declining support figures since the corruption scandal broke last year. He has removed a number of ministers and others from the party leadership, held internal hearings and drafted reform measures, but support for his government has dwindled to around 20%.
The scandal centers on unreported political funds raised through tickets sold for party events. Ten people – lawmakers and their aides – were charged in January.
More than 80 ruling party lawmakers, most of whom belonged to a large party faction previously led by assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, have acknowledged failing to report funds in possible violation of the Political Funds Control Law. The money received from the long-term practice is said to have ended up in uncontrolled slush funds.
