Tokyo:
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida suffered a new setback on Monday after his scandal-hit ruling party lost three seats in parliament in midterm elections.
Results from local election authorities and media exit polls showed his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) losing all three seats up for grabs to the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, the country's main opposition.
The losses in Tokyo, Shimane and Nagasaki – which could jeopardize Kishida's position as party leader in a vote later this year – came after the LDP was rocked by a major kickback scandal linked to political fundraising parties.
Factions of the LDP have admitted that for years they have systematically failed to report fundraising income and distribute the money to their members.
“We saw very serious consequences,” LDP Secretary General and Kishida's right-hand man Toshimitsu Motegi said late on Sunday, after exit polls showed his party had lost.
“It may take a long time, but we will work hard to regain voters' trust,” he told reporters.
Local media said Monday that the election losses could embolden LDP lawmakers to topple Kishida when his term as party leader ends in September.
“The Kishida government is on the brink of collapse after losing all the supplementary elections,” influential business magazine Nikkei said in an editorial.
The results highlight “the decline of the LDP,” said top-selling conservative Yomiuri Shimbun.
Kyodo News suggested that the loss “will undermine Kishida's political position and prompt LDP lawmakers to try to oust him from power before the next general election, making it unlikely that he will enter the presidential race around September.” side”.
Still, the LDP-led ruling bloc enjoys a comfortable legislative majority, and there is no clear alternative to immediately replace Kishida among LDP members.
The LDP took a back seat to the special weekend vote.
Two of the seats were vacated by lawmakers forced to resign over separate scandals.
The third became vacant after the death of an MP who was also a senior official in a party faction deeply involved in the money scandal.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)