Japan will vote in the elections for the House of Commons

People all over Japan are ready to have their say at the ballot box. On Sunday they will decide which lawmakers will hold the powerful lower house of the Diet.

A political fundraising scandal tests their trust in the main ruling party. And many voters are struggling to deal with inflation.

There are 465 seats to be won and more than 1,300 candidates. The candidates were seen across the country on Saturday as they made their final appeal to the public.

The benchmark for a majority in the House of Representatives is 233 seats. The ruling coalition went into the election with 279 votes.

Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru says he will consider it a victory if the Liberal Democratic Party and junior partner Komeito win a majority. Noda Yoshihiko, leader of the main opposition party, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, wants to prevent this from happening.

There are approximately 45,000 polling stations nationwide. The counting of votes starts on Sunday at 8 p.m.