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July 06, 2026
 

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2026 LOWER HOUSE ELECTION

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi responds to questions at the Upper House Budget Committee on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 6, 2026
Takaichi faces heat over defamatory campaign video scandal
A report claims that her campaign posted defamatory videos of her rivals on social media during election time. The release of audio recordings has intensified the controversy.
Lawyer Hidetoshi Masunaga (left) criticizes the ruling handed down by the Fukuoka High Court in Fukuoka on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 20, 2026
Two courts find February¡¯s Lower House election constitutional
The lawyers who filed the lawsuits claimed that the maximum vote-value disparity of 2.10 times in the election failed to meet the equal value of votes under the Constitution.
Muslims pray at Tokyo Camii in the Yoyogi-Uehara neighborhood. Though Muslims account for only 0.3% of Japan¡¯s population, rhetoric in online spaces and by conservative politicians has fomented social tensions.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
May 4, 2026
Fujisawa flashpoint: A mosque project stokes nativist fears
The planned construction of a mosque in Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture, had been quietly proceeding for years ¡ª until a YouTuber decided to run for office.
Japan Innovation Party co-leader Hirofumi Yoshimura and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi meet in parliament on March 17.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 19, 2026
LDP less eager than JIP on Lower House seat cut
For the 10% cut, the JIP aims to reduce the number of proportional representation seats by 45 from the current 176.
Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa speaks during a news conference in the parliamentary building on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 15, 2026
Where will the Centrist Reform Alliance¡¯s soul-searching take it?
The party¡¯s internal study has confirmed what many political observers had already concluded ¡ª the attempt to fuse the CDP and Komeito faced structural flaws from the start.
Democratic Party for the People leader Yuichiro Tamaki speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 6, 2026
Opposition Democratic Party for the People eyes change in strategy
The Democratic Party for the People¡¯s influence has diminished due to the Liberal Democratic Party¡¯s landslide victory in the February Lower House election.
Junya Ogawa, who became head of the Centrist Reform Alliance a month ago, is seeking to rebuild Japan¡¯s opposition after last month¡¯s election defeat while focusing on policy debate.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 13, 2026
CRA leader Junya Ogawa faces host of challenges, one month after election defeat
Junya Ogawa has held back on grilling government leaders, something that opposition parties usually prefer doing, and instead tried to focus on policy debate.
The Nikkei 225 stock average nears 60,000 on Thursday as analysts revise up their estimates.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 26, 2026
Nikkei 225 index forecasts revised upward after LDP¡¯s big win
Analysts are looking for 60,000, and that level is already near.
Japan¡¯s newly convened special session of the Diet is set to debate legislation criminalizing damage to the national flag, strongly backed by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and the opposition party Sanseito.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 24, 2026
Parliamentary debate grows over move to criminalize flag desecration
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi expressed a strong desire to enact a flag desecration ban, which is also supported by the?opposition party Sanseito.
Ghost Robotics Vision 60 takes part in an annual New Year's military drill by the Ground Self-Defense Force's 1st Airborne Brigade at Narashino exercise field in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, on Jan. 11.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Feb 22, 2026
With fresh mandate, Japan¡¯s Takaichi sets sights on divisive security goals
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi¡¯s election victory has empowered her to push forward with security and defense goals that, just a decade ago, would have been all but unattainable.
Nobuko Irie
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 21, 2026
DPP Lower House candidate arrested for election law violation
The defeated candidate, Nobuko Irie, 63, and the two others, are suspected of paying a total of ?270,000 in compensation to five female campaign staffers.
Sanae Takaichi and her ruling party's election victory strengthens Japan¡¯s stability and its role in regional and global diplomacy amid rising geopolitical uncertainty.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 20, 2026
Stability as strategy: Japan¡¯s moment for global leadership
Rising anti-China sentiment may have contributed to Takaichi¡¯s strong mandate.
Junya Ogawa, who heads the Centrist Reform Alliance, speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 19, 2026
CRA not a brake for LDP-JIP, but ¡®an entirely separate vehicle¡¯
Newly elected chief Junya Ogawa continues to tout the main opposition party as an alternative to the ruling coalition despite its recent setback at the ballot box.
The Liberal Democratic Party's newly elected Lower House lawmakers attend a workshop by party Secretary-General Shunichi Suzuki (standing) and other executives on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 18, 2026
LDP busy educating dozens of Lower House rookies
The party leadership fears that a gaffe made by any of the 66 newcomers to the all-important lower chamber of parliament may deal a blow to the Takaichi administration.
A university survey has found that about 80% of voters who encountered false information spread during the campaign for the Feb. 8 general election perceived it as true.
JAPAN
Feb 18, 2026
Survey finds false info perceived as true by many voters in Feb. 8 election
The online survey was conducted by Toyo University professor Morihiro Ogasawara from the night of Feb. 8 to Feb. 10.
U.S. President Donald Trump said that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi credited his endorsement with the LDP's success in the Feb. 8 Lower House election.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 17, 2026
Trump claims credit for LDP¡¯s election victory
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi credited his endorsement with the party¡¯s success in the election for the lower chamber of parliament.
Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura speaks to reporters as he leaves the Osaka Prefectural Government office Monday evening.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 17, 2026
JIP head Hirofumi Yoshimura hints at possible return to national politics
Osaka¡¯s governor told JIP executives that he might eye national politics if an Osaka metropolis plan for regional administrative reorganization is approved.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi¡¯s landslide win gives her power but risks internal strife unless she builds alliances and new party structures to manage rivals within the Liberal Democratic Party¡¯s ranks.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 17, 2026
The trouble with winning big for Takaichi and the LDP
Landslide victories in Japanese politics can conceal fragility within the ruling party.
Sanae Takaichi¡¯s historic win reflects Japan¡¯s longstanding conservatism and practical policy priorities, but claims that she represents an extreme rightward shift or ultraconservative agenda are exaggerated.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 16, 2026
Sanae Takaichi is not who you think she is
Judge Takaichi for who she is. Watch what she says, and more importantly, what she actually does.
Newly elected Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 13, 2026
Junya Ogawa elected leader of Centrist Reform Alliance
The former CDP lawmaker pledged to strengthen the CRA¡¯s internal structure as the party reels from its election defeat.
¡®My dream is broken¡¯: Japan visa rules push out foreign residents
A man orders from a kebab shop in the Okubo district in Tokyo.
Thailand gets serious about chasing high-spending tourists
Chinese tourists at Wat Arun Ratchawararam Rathawaramahawihan in Bangkok
Murakami says his novels are ¡®different¡¯ from AI literature
Haruki Murakami's first book in three years hit shelves in Japan on Friday.
Japan¡¯s princesses face life-altering legal revisions
Princess Aiko, the daughter of Emperor Naruhito, said in a 2022 news conference upon coming of age that she hopes to ¡°spend a long time together¡± with her parents.
Japan plans to sharply raise fees for residence permits from October
Foreign tourists walk on the path leading to the Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in May.
Okinawa¡¯s seaweed at a crossroads as harvesters and scientists race to save a fading tradition
Local harvesters gather <i>mozuku</i> during low tide at Hyakuna Beach in the city of Nanjo, Okinawa Prefecture. As the planet warms, rising ocean temperatures are placing increasing pressure on the seaweed industry.
Japan plans to sharply raise fees for residence permits from October
Foreign tourists walk on the path leading to the Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in May.
X Games returns to Chiba with new team format
Skateboarder Sora Shirai practices at Makuhari Messe in Chiba on Friday afternoon. X Games Chiba begins on Saturday.
NU Festival tests Takanawa Gateway City complex¡¯s culture cred
Veteran improvisers Kazuo Imai and Atsuhiro Ito brought some unruly energy to NU Festival, a three-day multimedia event held at the Takanawa Gateway City complex. ?
Japan¡¯s princesses face life-altering legal revisions
Princess Aiko, the daughter of Emperor Naruhito, said in a 2022 news conference upon coming of age that she hopes to ¡°spend a long time together¡± with her parents.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
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