Opinions Mixed over Japan Innovation Party’s Demand to Reduce Number of Seats in Diet

The Yomiuri Shimbun

20:00 JST, October 18, 2025

Reducing the number of Diet seats has been a major topic in policy talks between the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party as they consider forming a coalition.

Despite the LDP agreeing to reduce the number of seats, there is strong resistance within both the ruling and opposition parties.

“The essence of political reform is reducing the number of Diet members,” JIP leader and Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura said on a TV program on Friday.

The JIP has gained support in its stronghold of Osaka by continuing to advocate self-sacrificing reforms including reducing the number of seats in the Osaka prefectural and city assemblies, as well as the remuneration of local government leaders.

Yoshimura said the JIP wants to reduce the number of Diet seats by about 50, which is a little more than 10% of the 465 seats in the House of Representatives.

“And [the targeted seats] might possibly be those from the proportional representation segment,” he said.

Yoshimura made the remarks to apparently underline the determination of the JIP to realize the cuts.

Reducing the number of lower house seats was also an issue in the past.

In 1999, the LDP and the now defunct Liberal Party agreed to first reduce the seats in the proportional representation segment by 20 as a step toward a 50-seat reduction in total when forming a three-party coalition with Komeito.

During a party leader debate in 2012 with then LDP President Shinzo Abe, then Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda expressed his intention to dissolve the lower house if parties agreed to significantly reduce the number of seats.

Many LDP executives think that reducing the number of seats in the proportional representation segment would have a more significant impact on other parties, so it easier for the LDP to accept the demand.

If the LDP and the JIP reach an agreement in policy talks, the reduction is likely to be included as one of the issues they will work to realize.

However, strong doubts have been raised about reducing the number of lawmakers.

“The measure will further reduce the number of seats in rural areas. Such a sudden reduction is out of the question,” lower house member Ichiro Aisawa, who has led the LDP’s electoral reform efforts, said in a post on X.

Tetsuo Saito, leader of Komeito, which values an election under the proportional representation formula, told reporters on Friday that the primary purpose of the proportional representation segment is to hear the voices of the minority.

“Reducing seats in the proportional representation segment is harassment against Komeito,” a senior Komeito member said.