Survey: 128 LDP Lawmakers, Prefectural Chapters Support Early Party Presidential Election, Presenting Obstacle for PM Ishiba

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:23 JST, August 31, 2025

A total of 128 Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers and prefectural chapters are supportive of holding an early party presidential election as of Saturday following the party’s defeat in the recent House of Councillors election, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.

According to a Yomiuri Shimbun survey on the intentions of LDP lawmakers and prefectural chapters, 120 LDP Diet members and eight prefectural chapters are supportive of holding a party presidential election quickly before the current term of the party’s president, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, expires in September 2027.

The figure is well above the 33 — 32 lawmakers and one chapter — opposing an early presidential election. As 172 votes are needed to hold an early presidential election, the focus is now on how the nearly 50% of party lawmakers and chapters that provided no response, or responded that they have not decided, will vote.

After summarizing the results of the upper house election at its general meeting of Diet members on Tuesday, the LDP will proceed with confirming intentions for holding an early presidential election based on Section 4 of Article 6 of its party’s constitution.

The party will have its Diet members who support an early election submit signed and sealed letters on Sept. 8 and then announce the results. If a majority of the total of 342 LDP lawmakers and prefectural chapter representatives — 295 Diet members and the 47 prefectural chapter representatives — demand an early election, a presidential election will be held before Ishiba’s term as LDP president expires.

The Yomiuri Shimbun survey of LDP Diet members began on Aug. 20, asking about their intentions via questionnaires and in-person contacts over whether they “support” or “do not support” holding an extraordinary presidential election. A total of 276 members, representing 93%, provided a response.

A total of 120 lawmakers, representing 40% of all Diet members, expressed support. When asked for opinions on the party’s next steps, many emphasized the need for the party leadership, including the prime minister, to explicitly take responsibility for the party’s defeat in the upper house election and to implement reforms. Opinions included lower house member Shojiro Hiranuma saying, “Responsibility must be be taken for the defeats in the House of Representatives and upper house elections.”

Haruko Arimura, the chairperson of party’s general meeting of its lawmakers said, “Building a united party front is crucial” through a leadership election.

Only about 10% of lawmakers expressed opposition. Yasufumi Tanahashi, a former chairperson of the National Public Safety Commission, responded, “Holding [an early] presidential election would make it appear that the party is in political turmoil.”

The focus is on the 143 members who have not clearly stated their position, with 124 not giving an answer or saying they were undecided, and 19 who did not provide a response.

Many of such lawmakers said they would make a decision based on the party’s election summary and remarks by Ishiba and other party executives at the general meeting. Several also voiced the opinion that Ishiba himself should take responsibility. “The prime minister should announce his resignation himself,” a junior LDP lawmaker said.

For prefectural chapters that need to make a decision as an institution, The Yomiuri Shimbun asked chapter executives on their chapter’s stance between Thursday and Saturday.

The Saitama chapter decided on Saturday to support an early election. Seven other chapters —Yamagata, Niigata, Nagano, Shizuoka, Kagawa, Ehime and Miyazaki — plan to support an early election or have also decided to support it. The Gifu prefectural chapter opposes an early election, while the remaining 38 prefectural chapters will decide their stance going forward.