Word: abe
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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While final tallies won't be counted until Monday morning, early results indicate that the ruling coalition of Abe's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the New Komeito party has decisively lost its majority to the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). For the first time in the history of the LDP - which has dominated Japanese politics since its founding in 1955 - the Upper House will be controlled by an opposition party, potentially paving the way for Japan's first true two-party system. "This election was entirely a vote of no-confidence for Abe and the LDP/Komeito coalition...
With a DPJ landslide all but assured, the big election night question quickly became whether Abe would resign. Prime Ministers in the past have voluntarily stepped down after similar defeats - most recently, Ryutaro Hashimoto in 1998 - but even as the full extent of the loss sank in Sunday, Abe and his advisers gave every indication that he would try to hold on to power. "We tried our best and felt we made some progress, so the results are extremely disappointing," a bleary Abe told Japanese reporters from LDP headquarters. "I must push ahead with reforms and continue to fulfill...
Because the ruling coalition still holds a massive majority in the more powerful Lower House, the LDP retains control of the government. Abe could still face pressure to step down from members of his own party, although for now the LDP's most bloodthirsty factions may be content with the departures of some of Abe's closest Cabinet ministers, including LDP Secretary General Hidenao Nakagawa, who appeared on TV to take responsibility for the loss and submitted his resignation late Sunday...
...Japanese public may be less forgiving. Before today's poll, Abe's approval ratings were scraping 30%, and many voters said they wanted to send Abe and the LDP a clear message. "Although the Upper House elections are not the election of the ruling party, I want Abe to take it as a defeat and resign," says Masamichi Watanabe, 23, of Wako city, outside Tokyo...
...While Abe will likely spend the immediate future quieting dissension within the LDP, the victorious DPJ will face its own difficult choices. With control of the Upper House, the party will be able to block legislation, although the ruling coalition's two-thirds majority in the Lower House will allow it to override most opposition. DPJ leader Ichiro Ozawa could choose to throw the government into gridlock, hoping to force Abe to call snap elections. But playing parliamentary chicken is risky: such a move could prompt the public to see the DPJ as obstructionist and incapable of governing, a charge...