Japan’s Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, declared victory on Monday after leading his governing coalition to a significant majority in national elections.
Kishida said on Monday that he intends to make the most of his surprisingly strong election result as he confronts significant policy problems, including the need to establish an extra budget to speed up the recovery from the pandemic’s effects.
“It was a difficult election, but the desire of the people — that they want us to shape the future of our nation under the stable LDP-Komeito coalition and the Kishida administration — was clearly shown.
We were awarded 261 seats in the Liberal Democratic Party, which is a significant number. The public mandate will be met by us, as a responsible party “he said.
Kishida, a soft-spoken former banker, has remained true to the beliefs of the party’s right-traditional side, advocating for more military spending in order to combat an increasingly assertive China.
After winning 259 seats in the Lower House election on Sunday, the governing Liberal Democratic Party retained its commanding advantage in the country’s first major test as prime minister.
Even while the governing coalition’s 291 seats, including 32 from coalition partner Komeito, represent a reduction in representation from its 305 seats before the election, it is still large enough to get legislation through the House of Representatives without trouble.
