Elections

Japanese Parties Step Up Preparations for Lower House Election

Yomiuri Shimbun file photo
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi

The Yomiuri Shimbun

2:00 JST, January 19, 2026

During the first weekend since Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi conveyed her intention to dissolve the House of Representatives to senior figures in the ruling coalition, the government and leaders of both the ruling and opposition parties intensified their preparations for a general election.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told a gathering in his home city of Kumamoto on Saturday that it is necessary to “ask the people for their mandate” so that the prime minister’s agenda can be achieved. Takaichi advocates a policy of “responsible and proactive public finances” and an early revision to Japan’s three key national security documents.

Addressing concerns that deliberations for the fiscal 2026 budget could be delayed, he emphasized that the impact on people’s daily lives would be “extremely limited,” citing the passing of the supplementary budget for fiscal 2025.

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Shunichi Suzuki, secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party, told reporters in Morioka that he wanted to “accept the prime minister’s decision and restore political stability.” Japan Innovation Party coleader Fumitake Fujita told reporters in Tokyo that the party would “boldly put forward the policies stated in the coalition agreement and ask voters to judge their merits.”

Opposition parties are also rushing to prepare for an election. Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda and Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito — who together have formed a new party, the Centrist Reform Alliance — appeared side by side to record a YouTube program. Afterwards, Noda told reporters: “This election is the first step toward expanding a centrist bloc. I want to fight through it with all my being.”

Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the Democratic Party for the People, told reporters in Tosashimizu, Kochi Prefecture, that he would “transform politics into something new, putting people’s lives first.”