Japan’s CDPJ Seeks Unified Opposition Vote in Prime Minister Election, but JIP, DPFP Remain Unlikely to Agree

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:16 JST, September 19, 2025

The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan is working hard to secure cooperation from other opposition parties ahead of a vote to choose the prime minister, which will be conducted during the extraordinary Diet session following the ruling Liberal Democratic Party leadership election.

The Japan Innovation Party and the Democratic Party for the People are reluctant to cooperate with the CDPJ, the largest opposition party, as they disagree on fundamental policies such as the Constitution, foreign affairs and security. The prospect of the opposition parties unifying their vote therefore appears to dim.

CDPJ leader Yoshihiko Noda met with JIP coleader Fumitake Fujita at the Diet on Thursday and called for “collaboration in various fields.” Noda subsequently held separate meetings with DPFP leader Yuichiro Tamaki and Japanese Communist Party Chairperson Tomoko Tamura.

The ruling coalition currently holds 220 seats — 196 by the LDP and 24 by Komeito — in the House of Representatives, with the threshold for a majority being 233. Therefore, with sufficient unity among the opposition in the vote to choose the prime minister, a change of government is possible.

Noda’s intention is to unify votes for himself by proceeding with discussions with each opposition party.

“We will discuss openly and frankly what kind of government vision the opposition should pursue,” he said at a press conference on Wednesday.

In the prime ministerial election following the House of Representatives election last November, the runoff vote narrowed to incumbent Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Noda. However, the second largest opposition party, JIP, and the third largest DPFP instead voted for their own party leaders. This resulted in a total of 84 invalid votes, allowing Ishiba to continue his tenure.

The formation of a government centered on the CDPJ would require the cooperation of both the JIP and the DPFP.

One JIP executive said, “Voting for Noda is not an option” — an opinion that has been repeatedly voiced by others in the party. At a press conference, Fujita said regarding the vote to choose the prime minister, “We will follow the same approach as before.”

Tamaki also said that voting for himself was his “basic position,” adding, “Forming a government with a party that we disagree with on security and energy policy would only lead to an unfortunate future,” thus rejecting the idea of cooperation with the CDPJ.