Japan PM Sanae Takaichi tells party official she is mulling dissolving lower house: source
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told a ruling Liberal Democratic Party official that she is considering dissolving the House of Representatives at the outset of the ordinary parliamentary session scheduled to begin on Jan. 23, a source familiar with the matter said Saturday, Kyodo reports.
Some lawmakers within the LDP are calling for a dissolution while public approval ratings for her Cabinet remain high at around 70 percent in media polls, with a party member saying, "We will proceed with preparations with an early dissolution in mind."
Takaichi made no reference to the possibility of a dissolution in an interview with NHK recorded on Thursday and aired on Sunday, reiterating that she will "focus on tackling challenges at hand" including rising prices after the enactment in December of a supplementary budget which funds her economic stimulus measures.
If the lower chamber is dissolved, official campaigning for a general election may start on either Jan. 27 or Feb. 3, with voting set for Feb. 8 or Feb. 15, respectively.
Sources familiar with the matter said earlier Saturday that speculation had emerged within the government about Takaichi considering dissolving the lower house when it convenes.
The LDP and its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, currently hold a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives. Losing even a single seat would drop them below the 233 seats needed for a majority in the 465-member chamber.
JIP chief Hirofumi Yoshimura said on the NHK program that even though the topic did not come up when they last talked on Friday, he was not surprised to hear news of Takaichi considering a Diet dissolution, adding that a decision on whether to seek a fresh public mandate is entirely up to the prime minister.
The ruling bloc remains a minority in the less powerful House of Councillors.
There are also voices against an early lower house dissolution within the LDP, according to the source, given that a snap election which would follow is certain to cause deliberations on the fiscal 2026 draft budget to drag on beyond the end of the current fiscal year in March.
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the rising opposition Democratic Party for the People, said on the NHK program that a lower chamber dissolution this month would contradict his party's agreement with the LDP last month to cooperate on passing the fiscal 2026 budget.
Tamaki's party agreed to support the draft budget in return for the LDP's acceptance of its request to raise the tax-free annual income threshold, aimed at boosting households' net income.
Earlier, it was reported that Sanae Takaichi had vowed to make Japan strong and prosperous through reforms.
