Polling stations opened at 7 (23 on Saturday in Poland). Voting in over 44.6 thousand polling stations will last until 20 (12 on Sunday in Poland), although in the northern regions affected by record snowfall, this time may change.
When did the general elections start in Japan?
How many seats are up for grabs in the House of Representatives?
What is the number of candidates running for seats?
What are the main problems of the election campaign?
New political reality
Voters will elect 289 deputies of the House of Representatives in single-member districts and 176 from proportional lists. A record number of women are running for office – they constitute over 24%. all candidates.
Voting takes place in a new political reality — following the collapse last year of the 26-year-old ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party (PLD), led by Takaichi, with the pacifist Komeito party. Currently, PLD cooperates with the right-wing Japan Innovation Party (JPI). Before the dissolution of parliament, the PLD had 198 seats and the JPI had 34.
The ultraconservative Takaichi, the first woman prime minister in Japan's history, put everything on one card: she announced her resignation if there was no majority. Pre-election polls suggest that PLD has a chance to regain the independent majority it lost in 2024.
After joining the opposition in mid-January, Komeito formed a new grouping with the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (KPDJ) – the Center Reform Alliance. This camp seeks to retain 167 seats in parliament.
The main issues around which the 16-day campaign – the shortest in the post-war history of the country – focused were national security and political settlements. The Takaichi group calls for a drastic increase in military spending and stricter immigration laws. In turn, the opposition promoted diversity and “realistic security”, criticizing the PLD for corruption scandals. The exit poll results will be published shortly after the polls close.
