General Election, 27 October 2024

On 9 October Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru dissolved parliament just eight days into his term of office. He called the general election in a climate of low public trust in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) stemming from a series of “money and politics” scandals (Nippon.com 2024; Miyake 2024). This partly explains voter turnout dropping to 53.85 per cent, the third lowest since World War II and down 2.08 per cent since 2021 (International IDEA n.d.b; Japan Times 2024). Some experts also pointed to the short lead-time for campaigning (beginning 15 October) and delays in regional distribution of polling cards (Japan Times 2024). 

Japan employs a supplementary member electoral system whereby voters cast one ballot for a single constituency candidate in a first-past-the-post (FPTP) contest; and another ballot for a political party through proportional representation (PR). The House of Representatives consists of 465 seats, with 289 filled through FPTP and 176 via PR (Ward 2024). Through a mixed model of election management, the Ministry for Internal Affairs and Communications directs and advises authorities at all levels on both the FPTP and PR elements of elections (International IDEA n.d.a).

In response to mounting concerns over electoral integrity, Japan passed a revised political funds bill in June 2024, aimed at increasing transparency in campaign financing. However, the law has limitations, particularly due to the absence of a ban on corporate donations, and its full impact will not be realized until January 2026 (ACE 2007). Part of the background to the legislation was that a member of Japan's House of Representatives, Mito Kakizawa, violated the Public Offices Election Act in an incident of vote-buying during the 2023 Tokyo Koto Ward mayoral election. Kakizawa admitted to handing 1 million yen (USD $35,000–36,000) to five individuals—including LDP members—to support the successful mayoral candidate (Mainichi 2024).

The 2024 election resulted in the LDP, alongside its coalition partner Komeito, losing their majority for the first time in 15 years. The coalition took only 215 seats, falling short of the 233 needed. The LDP alone lost 56 seats, leaving it with 191. This election outcome signals a period of uncertainty in Japanese politics, with growing calls for electoral and governance reforms to address systemic flaws (Takao 2024), echoed also by the Prime Minister (Politico/AP). This shift, compounded by a series of scandals, amplified but potential misinformation (The Japan Times), involving kickbacks and controversial organizations, eroded public trust in the party (Nippon.com). Many citizens felt their votes were underrepresented, and public dissatisfaction with the political system grew, particularly as the electoral system was perceived to favor larger parties. (Pew Research Center)

The 2024 election also saw a notable advance in gender equality, with a record 73 women elected to the House of Representatives – a 46 per cent increase from previous elections. However, women still account for only 15.7 per cent of parliamentary seats, well below the global average (International IDEA 2024), and female candidates faced widespread misogyny, including vote harassment (hyohara), unwanted touching, sexist remarks, and social media abuse, while media coverage reinforced gendered stereotypes ().