Takaichi Cabinet Restarts: Self-Discipline Needed in Era of ‘One Strong, Many Weak’ / Policy Shifts Must Be Explained with Sincerity

Editorial

15:00 JST, February 10, 2026

Sunday’s House of Representatives election saw the Liberal Democratic Party achieve a landslide victory, securing its largest number of seats since the end of World War II, while the opposition ended up as small parties with no more than a few dozen lower house members each.

Japanese politics are said to have entered an unprecedented era of “one strong party, many weak ones.”

In the lower house election two years ago and the House of Councillors election last year, the movements of independent voters created significant fluctuations, leading to crushing defeats for the LDP. In the most recent election, the same dynamic appears to have worked in the LDP’s favor.

Because the opposition parties lack sufficient strength, however, a misjudgment by the government could lead to an irreversible situation. The government’s responsibility is immense.

Long-term perspective essential

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi must not only advocate for the necessity of bold policy shifts, but sincerely explain their content and significance to the public and seek their understanding as well.

Meanwhile, opposition parties are standing at a crossroads and face the question of whether they can build a new core force and fulfill their role of monitoring the administration of the government and ruling parties.

Takaichi told a press conference that the landslide victory in the lower house election “has given us a powerful push to carry through the policy shifts no matter what.”

The election results gave the LDP a two-thirds majority in the lower house, even without its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party. This means that bills rejected by the upper house can be passed again in the lower house.

Unified local elections will be held next year, but unless the lower house is dissolved, no major national elections will be held until the 2028 upper house election.

With the solid foundation established in this lower house election, Takaichi should be able to focus on tackling various challenges. She should adopt a medium- to long-term perspective and steadily implement concrete measures to address the declining birthrate and aging population, promote economic growth and strengthen defense capabilities, among other concerns.

Takaichi expressed enthusiasm at the press conference for advancing conservative policies, such as establishing a National Intelligence Bureau.

The concept of establishing a National Intelligence Bureau involves reorganizing the current Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office into a cross-ministerial body involving the Foreign Ministry and the National Police Agency, among others. Japan’s intelligence capabilities, such as information gathering and analysis, are considered weak. The aim to enhance its ability to counter so-called information warfare is understandable.

Additionally, Takaichi emphasized during the election campaign that she would push for legalizing the expanded use of premarital surnames. The idea is to record maiden surnames on resident certificates to give them legal effect, thereby promoting their use throughout society.

This is one approach to eliminate disadvantages from changing surnames, while also avoiding the introduction of a selective separate surname system for married couples, which could undermine family unity. This legal framework has been under consideration within the LDP for several years. Takaichi should work with the party to achieve this.

Consumption tax cut irrational

Takaichi also said at the press conference that she intended to have a national council, composed of cross-party lawmakers, compile an interim report by this summer regarding the pledge to exempt food items from consumption tax for two years.

With the declining birthrate and aging population accelerating, social security expenditures — including pensions, healthcare and nursing care — will only continue to balloon. Cutting the consumption tax, the core revenue source for these programs, does not make sense.

To enrich the people, it makes far more sense to grow the economy by advancing Takaichi’s initiatives of investing in crisis management across 17 strategic sectors, such as artificial intelligence, semiconductors and shipbuilding.

Meanwhile, Centrist Reform Alliance coleaders Yoshihiko Noda and Tetsuo Saito have decided to resign to take responsibility for the party’s crushing defeat in the lower house election. Senior politicians who led the administration of the now-defunct Democratic Party of Japan, including Katsuya Okada, Yukio Edano and Ichiro Ozawa, were also defeated across the board.

It feels like the era of fierce competition between the LDP and the DPJ has ended.

The lower house election saw the CRA win 49 seats, followed by the Democratic Party for the People with 28 and Sanseito with 15. The absence of a central party within the opposition is not a desirable situation.

2-party system recedes

The current lower house election system, based on the combination of single-seat constituencies and proportional representation, will soon mark its 30th anniversary since it was first implemented in 1996. Introduced with the aim of fostering a two-party system, it has produced a landscape vastly different from what was envisioned at the time.

Given this reality, the time has come to deepen discussions on the nature of the electoral system.

Voter turnout for the recent lower house election was 56.26%, exceeding the previous election by 2.41 percentage points.

While heavy snowfall in cold regions throughout the campaign raised concerns about lower turnout, efforts by local governments that encouraged the active use of early voting appear to have been effective. The turnout indicates that this election drew greater interest from voters than in the past.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Feb. 10, 2026)