Word: leaders
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...parliament was certainly a shock to the Liberal Democratic Party, which has ruled the country for 34 years. In the most devastating setback in its history, the L.D.P. claimed only 36 of the 126 seats up for grabs, while the underdog Japan Socialist Party took 46. Declared exultant J.S.P. leader Takako Doi: "I truly felt the mountains moving...
...Credit for the greatest blunder, however, went to Agriculture Minister Hisao Horinouchi, who said, "It is wrong for women to come to the forefront of politics." Pausing just long enough to take one foot out of his mouth and insert the other, Horinouchi then attacked Doi, the popular Socialist leader. "British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher is an exception, but she has a husband and children," Horinouchi asserted. "Doi does not. Can such a person serve as Prime Minister...
...throw their votes to the Socialists but also to enter the political arena in record numbers. Female candidates increased their numbers in the upper house from 23 to 33; they now account for 13% of the chamber's seats. Half of those elected were Socialists like Doi. The J.S.P. leader, however, downplayed her role. "It wasn't my popularity," Doi said. "I just happened to be a woman...
...were working to put forward one of their own. But the Old Guard resisted, still bound by tradition, faction loyalty and a determination not to relinquish power. In a seeming capitulation to the young, however, the party agreed at week's end to leave the selection of a new leader to a party vote, rather than the back-room politicking that gave rise to leaders like Uno. "Our defeat was caused by the public's distrust of us," said party elder Takami Eto. "We must now rebuild that trust by operating more in the open...
...will a revamping of party practices be enough to lure back voters? Of key concern are the farmers who deserted the party in droves, complaining that the L.D.P. had capitulated to foreign trade pressures by opening Japan to food imports. Charged Masatoshi Wada, a leader of the 10,000-strong Shuso Agricultural Cooperative: "The L.D.P. promised to fight against liberalization at any cost, and then gave up the fight. We can no longer trust them at their face value...