Japan PM Kishida's coalition keeps majority in general elections

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Monday returned to power after the declaration of the results of the general elections held in the country on Sunday.

Kishida's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the ally Komeito won 291 out of the 465 seats, a comfortable majority in the House of Representatives, reported Kyodo News. The party won the sole majority in the house with 233 seats.

However, the LDP witnessed the loss of 17 seats in the house in comparison to the number of seats the party won in the previous general election in 2017, suffering high-profile losses including the resignation of the secretary-general of the party, Akira Amari who lost to his opposition rival. However, the party has won enough seats to "effectively" control all standing committees, reported the news agency.

The main opposition, Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan too lost 14 seats on Sunday and came down to 96 despite the agreement with the Japanese Communist Party to field unified candidates. However, another opposition, the Japan Innovation Party that did not become a part of the CDP-J alliance nearly quadrupled the number of seats it won in the previous election, winning 41 seats.

After the declaration of the results, the Prime Minister said that this is the mandate that would give him the opportunity to fulfil the promises he made during the campaign in the run-up to the election that included the strengthening of the medical care against COVID-19 and bringing back the economy on the growth track and national security agenda.

"Based on this outcome, we want to run the government and manage parliamentary affairs in a steady manner," Kyodo News quoted Kishida as saying.

The Prime Minister admitted that his party faced a "tough fight" in many districts where they confronted the unified opposition candidates.

He said that the government would arrange more beds for the treatment of COVID-19 as a preparation for the commencement of a possible sixth wave in the country and assured that the government would bring a stimulus package within a year to support the hard-hit business.

A special session is set to be convened by the Parliament on November 10 where Kishida will be confirmed as the Prime Minister. The Cabinet is expected to remain largely unchanged, according to Kyodo News.

Interestingly, the election was being seen as a referendum on the party's government in the country for the last nine years, headed by two Prime Ministers Shinzo Abe and Yoshihide Suga.

( With inputs from ANI )

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