US EditionJapan's Takaichi Wins Landslide in Snap Election, Exit Polls Show
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party coalition won up to 316 seats, a record majority since 1955, enabling her to advance a right-wing economic and defense agenda.
- On February 8, 2026, NHK projected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party and Japan Innovation Party coalition could secure as many as 366 of 465 seats in the lower house of parliament, with the LDP alone winning up to 328 seats.
- Takaichi called the vote after three months in office to seek a mandate for tax cuts, defence spending, and immigration measures.
- Record snowfall in parts of Japan snarled traffic and forced some polling stations to close early, but voters who trudged through snow in Uonuma still cast ballots during Sunday voting.
- Markets reacted to the coalition securing 310 seats, which could override the upper chamber; Keidanren welcomed the stability while Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi urged rapid defence policy moves.
- Analysts warned that China responded with countermeasures by summoning Tokyo's ambassador and urging citizens not to travel, while Donald Trump, U.S. President, endorsed Takaichi and announced her March 19 White House visit amid strong US-Japan trade and security ties.
226 Articles
226 Articles
Japan's Takaichi wins big in snap election after Trump endorsement
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi‘s ruling party dominated a snap election on Sunday, securing a supermajority in the country’s House of Representatives and giving Takaichi an even larger mandate to pursue her right-wing agenda. Takaichi, who is the first female prime minister of Japan, took a risk in calling for the election just months after entering office. While very popular herself, her Liberal Democratic Party has been hampered by a v…
Historic win pits Takaichi’s vision of Japan against the markets
By Alastair Gale and Sakura Murakami, Bloomberg News Back in October, Sanae Takaichi struggled to wrangle enough seats in parliament to become prime minister. Now she has the biggest election mandate of any Japanese leader since World War II. The surprisingly large victory margin allows the staunch conservative to implement her nationalist vision of a more forceful, outspoken, self-sufficient Japan. She can strengthen Japan’s military, stand up …
Japanese PM's ruling party secures expected supermajority in lower house vote
The governing party of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi secured a two-thirds supermajority in a key parliamentary election Sunday, Japanese media reported citing preliminary results, earning a landslide victory thanks to her popularity.
Japanese prime minister's landslide win gives her party a lower-house supermajority and more room to enact a right-wing agenda
Takaichi aims to boost Japan’s economy and military capabilities as tensions grow with China and she tries to nurture ties with the United States.
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