Japan's ruling coalition lost its majority in the House of Councilors election held on 20th, and experts predict that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's regime will become even more unstable.
According to foreign media including Reuters on 21st, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner Gong Myoung Party failed to secure the 50 seats necessary to maintain a majority in this election.
As of 6 a.m. on 21st, even including the unfinalized seats, the ruling party has 121 seats, while the opposition has 120 seats, falling short of the majority (125 seats).
Prime Minister Ishiba lost control of the House of Representatives due to the election defeat last October. With this defeat in the House of Councilors election, he is now facing greater political pressure, according to Japanese media.
Prime Minister Ishiba said he takes the election results "very seriously". However, he noted that he is not considering resigning from his position and stated, "I will continue to perform my duties as prime minister."
He emphasized that he is "currently engaged in very important tariff negotiations with the United States" and will devote all efforts to negotiations for national interest, regardless of the election results.
Japan could face tariffs as high as 25% if it fails to reach a trade agreement with the United States by August 1.
In this election, the opposition capitalized on promises for tax cuts to dig into voter sentiment. Experts analyzed that voters dissatisfied with the government's response to rising prices, particularly rice prices, threw their votes to the opposition party that campaigned for a consumption tax reduction.
The rise of the far-right new party "Sanseitō (Reform Party)" was also notable. Founded on YouTube, this party secured at least 13 seats by advocating "Japan First" and anti-immigration slogans. Coinciding with the U.S. tariff war, the party found its footing in institutional politics amid the surge of nationalism within Japan.
The ruling party's loss of a majority has further heightened uncertainty in Japan's political landscape. The Liberal Democratic Party, which emphasizes fiscal soundness, will have to compromise with opposition parties advocating for fiscal expansion to pass budgets.
The Yomiuri Shimbun cited experts predicting that "the budgets requested by both ruling and opposition parties will continue to rise" and that "the outlook of overseas investors on the Japanese economy will become quite harsh."