Japan’s snap election enters final stretch as Takaichi seeks mandate

Japanese voters will head to the polls on Sunday, February 8, in a snap election called by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, the nation's first female prime minister. The election comes just three months after Takaichi took office in October 2025, making it the third national election in fifteen months and one of the shortest intervals from dissolution to voting in Japan's postwar history.

Takaichi dissolved the lower house on January 23, just sixteen days before the scheduled vote—a record for the shortest period between dissolution and election day. The move is highly unusual. Japan's constitution allows a maximum of forty days between dissolution and voting, but Takaichi's decision to hold the election in January breaks decades of precedent. The last time a prime minister dissolved the lower house at the start of an ordinary Diet session was sixty years ago.

The timing reflects Takaichi's political calculation. When she made the decision to call the election, she enjoyed approval ratings around 70 percent—an unusually high level of public support that gave her party a genuine opportunity to secure a strong mandate. The Liberal Democratic Party, which has dominated Japanese politics for most of the postwar period, lost its majority in the 2024 election following a major political funding scandal that forced the previous prime minister to step down.

Background

The LDP's troubles began with revelations about how party members handled campaign funds. The scandal created deep public distrust and forced Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru to take disciplinary action against those found guilty of violating party rules. Despite these efforts to restore the party's image, the damage to the LDP's political standing persisted.

When Takaichi assumed leadership of the party, she faced a fractured coalition. The LDP had relied for twenty-six years on an alliance with Komeitō, a smaller Buddhist-affiliated party that typically held around thirty seats in the lower house. This partnership had been important to LDP majority governments since 1999. Komeitō voters, estimated at around twenty-six thousand supporters in both rural and urban districts, provided essential electoral support.

However, the coalition collapsed in October 2025 over disagreements about campaign finance reform. Komeitō demanded concrete action to strengthen regulations on corporate and political donations. Takaichi resisted, arguing that stricter regulations could be considered in the future. When talks stalled, Komeitō leader Saitō Tetsuo announced his party would not return to the coalition, ending more than two decades of cooperation.

Without Komeitō, Takaichi needed a new partner. She turned to the Ishin no Kai, also known as the Japan Innovation Party, a reformist group that has advocated for reducing the size of government. The new coalition agreement between the LDP and Ishin includes a commitment to reduce the number of lower house seats from 465 to 420—a cut of roughly 10 percent. This reduction has become a centerpiece of Takaichi's election platform.

Key Details

The Coalition and Political Reform

The LDP-Ishin partnership represents a significant shift in Japanese politics. While smaller than Komeitō, Ishin brings its own political weight and has made legislative efficiency a priority. The party's "Self-Defeating Reforms" initiative—a term that refers to the idea of government cutting its own size—has resonated with voters concerned about government spending.

Public support for reducing legislative seats appears strong. A December 2025 Nikkei Shimbun poll found that 56 percent of respondents wanted both fewer Diet seats and electoral system reform. A Yomiuri Shimbun survey in the same month showed 78 percent approved of reducing legislative seats. A Jiji Press poll from January showed 56 percent supported the legislation drafted for the next Diet session.

"The appetite for political reform is growing," according to analysis of recent polling data.

The LDP's 2026 election manifesto explicitly commits the party to passing a bill guaranteeing the 10 percent seat reduction in the next Diet session. The legislation includes an automatic provision: if political parties cannot reach consensus by year's end, twenty-five single-member seats and twenty proportional representation seats will be cut automatically.

The Election Campaign

Polls suggest Takaichi's gamble may pay off. The LDP enters the race with confidence, backed by Takaichi's high approval ratings and public appetite for political reform. The main opposition party, the newly formed Centrist Reform Alliance, appears to be struggling to gain traction.

The snap election timing, while unusual, reflects Takaichi's strategic thinking. By calling the vote while her approval ratings remain strong, she seeks to capitalize on public support before political momentum potentially shifts. The election will determine whether she can secure a majority government and a fresh mandate to implement her coalition's reform agenda.

What This Means

The outcome of Sunday's election will shape Japanese politics for years to come. If Takaichi and the LDP secure a strong result, they will have the political capital to pursue legislative reforms, including the controversial seat reduction. Such a victory would also validate the new LDP-Ishin coalition as a governing partnership.

A weaker result could undermine Takaichi's reform agenda and force her to negotiate with opposition parties on key legislation. The election also carries implications for Japan's approach to economic policy and international relations, as a strong LDP mandate would give Takaichi greater freedom to pursue her priorities.

The snap election represents a turning point in Japanese politics. Takaichi's decision to dissolve parliament and seek a new mandate reflects both confidence in her political position and recognition that the LDP needs a fresh start after the funding scandal. Japanese voters will now decide whether to grant her that mandate.