Background on Japan’s parliamentary elections

Background on Japan’s parliamentary elections

Prime Minister Taro Aso dissolved Japan’s parliament ahead of national elections to be held Aug. 30. Here is background on what the elections mean:

THE VOTE — The elections will be the first for the lower house of parliament since 2005, when charismatic Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi led the ruling party to a surprisingly broad success by vowing to rejuvenate the ruling bloc and carry out massive reforms, including the privatization of the postal system.

RULING PARTY— Since the last elections and the resignation of Koizumi after five years in office, the ruling party has descended into its worst disarray in decades. Founded in 1955, it has governed the country — backed largely by big business and conservative support among farmers and the middle class — for all but 10 months in 1993. It has recently been unable to find a strong leader. Aso is the third prime minister to take office since 2006.

THE OPPOSITION— Led by Yukio Hatoyama, the Democratic Party of Japan has made huge strides in gaining the support of voters, despite its lack of experience in office. The party has championed slimmer government, lower taxes and a more independent foreign policy, but remains generally conservative, which is seen as a key element in its success with mainstream voters who are disillusioned with the ruling party but don’t want too radical a change.

STATUS QUO— The Liberal Democrats now control 303 of the 480 seats in parliament’s lower house, the more powerful of the body’s two chambers. Its junior coalition partner, Komeito, has 31 seats. The Democratic Party of Japan has 112 seats. The next largest opposition party in the lower house is the Japan Communist Party, with nine seats.