Japan’s LDP Struggles to Gauge Distance with Former Coalition Partner Komeito for Upcoming Election

By Yuta Abe / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

16:44 JST, January 23, 2026

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party is struggling to gauge the distance it should take with Komeito, its former ruling coalition partner in the upcoming House of Representatives election. Komeito has formed a new party, the Centrist Reform Alliance, with the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.

Prime Minister and LDP President Sanae Takaichi, LDP Secretary General Shunichi Suzuki and other party executives met at the party headquarters on Thursday. The party has now finalized its candidate selections for single-seat constituencies in the lower house election, deciding to field 285 candidates.

The LDP plans to field candidates in 10 constituencies that have previously been seen as Komeito’s territory, including ones in Osaka and Hyogo prefectures, reflecting changes to the LDP-Komeito relationship.

Within the LDP, however, some still give consideration to Komeito, voicing hope for maintaining cooperation at the constituency level.

As a result of the formation of the CRA, the LDP, in the upcoming election, has decided to field candidates in 10 of the 11 constituencies in which Komeito fielded candidates in the 2024 lower house election.

Specific examples include Hiroshima Constituency No. 3, which Komeito leader — and now CRA coleader — Tetsuo Saito won in the last election, and Hyogo Constituency No. 8, which former Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Minister Hiromasa Nakano won in the last election.

Although the LDP is fielding candidates in these constituencies, there remain strong voices within the LDP for regional cooperation with Komeito. This is because Komeito’s local assembly members will remain in the party, rather than represent the CRA, and figures such as Saito are running in proportional representation races. Therefore, the LDP recognizes that not all Komeito votes in single-seat constituencies are expected to flow to the CRA.

The LDP leadership intends to hold back on criticism of Komeito for the present to gauge the party’s next move.

A senior LDP lawmaker stated, “Provoking Komeito wouldn’t do the LDP any good.”

In Hyogo Constituency No. 2, which Komeito won in the 2024 lower house election, the LDP will not field a candidate at the request of the current coalition partner Japan Innovation Party, which will field a candidate in the constituency.

The LDP and JIP have stated that they will not cooperate in elections, in principle. However, LDP Election Strategy Committee Chairperson Keiji Furuya explained to reporters, “We took the JIP’s request seriously.” The LDP views this as a “symbol of election cooperation,” according to an LDP executive.

In addition, the LDP has refrained from fielding a candidate in Wakayama Constituency No. 2, where former Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Hiroshige Seko, who left the LDP over the politics and money scandal and is now running as an independent candidate. This appears to be in consideration of local voices saying the LDP should avoid splitting conservative votes.

Instead of fielding LDP candidates, the party “recommended” Tadashi Morishima for Osaka Constituency No. 2 and “supported” Takeshi Saiki for Fukui Constituency No. 2, who are independents that joined an LDP parliamentary group in November.