Japan Politics The results of voting for the upper house of parliament on Sunday appeared to be going in favor of the ruling coalition. Exit polls have projected the LDP and its ally Komeito to win 69-83 out of 125 seats.
Tokyo, Agency. There is a wave of mourning across the country after the death of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Abe was assassinated on July 8 in the western Japanese city of Nara. This incident shook the whole of Japan from inside. Two days after the assassination of Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, Shinzo Abe, voting for the upper house of parliament on Sunday appeared to be going in favor of the ruling coalition.
Public broadcaster NHK’s exit poll has predicted a victory for the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) led by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and its ally Komeito with 69-83 out of 125 seats. The election results will be officially announced on Monday. Former prime minister AB was shot dead on Friday during an election rally near a railway station in Nara.
What do analysts have to say
Analysts believed that the AB assassination would strengthen Prime Minister Kishida and the LDF. He estimated that the number of members of the ruling coalition in the Upper House would increase from 55 to between 59-69. Amidst anticipation of victory, LDF candidate from Nara KE Sato said, “Even after the assassination of former PM AB, we continued campaigning as we did not want to be feared by terrorism.”
Elections to the less powerful upper house of parliament are usually seen as a mandate to form a government. A major victory in this would strengthen the government of former Hiroshima banker Kishida and help it meet the goal of increasing military spending. This could pave the way for an amendment to the Constitution of Japan, which AB could not do even after much effort.
US Secretary of State will reach Japan today
According to news agency ANI, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will arrive in Tokyo on Monday to pay tribute to Abby. During this, he will also meet senior Japanese officials.
Security agency not satisfied with the patrolling system
Nara police had no information or guesses about the attacker Tetsuya Yamagami before the first shot at former PM AB. Japan’s National Police Agency said it was reviewing Abby’s security arrangements on the day of the massacre. The agency suspects that there was a problem with the police patrolling system at the rear where AB was delivering the speech. Some security experts are questioning the police action for not stopping the attacker.
