Japan’s ruling LDP loses majority in early elections

What happened

Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its governing partner, Komeito, lost their majority in the lower house in early elections on Sunday. new prime minister Shigeru Ishiba. The LDP coalition won about 215 seats in the 465-seat House of Representatives, down from 279 seats and far below the 233 needed for a majority. The LDP still won a large number of seats, but opposition parties, led by the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP), won 235 seats.

Who said what

“The results to date are extremely serious and we take them very seriously,” Ishiba said. His decision to hold elections immediately after becoming party leader was a “political gamble,” Shaimaa Khalil said at the meeting. BBC“and it backfired.” Ishiba has seen his popularity plummet as he dropped bold campaign promises and failed to clean up the party’s tarnished image.