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November 21, 2024
 

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Eric Johnston

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Eric Johnston
Four candidates vying to lead Nippon Ishin no Kai — from left, former Kanagawa Gov. Shigefumi Matsuzawa, party Deputy Secretary-General Ryuna Kanemura, Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura and Lower House member Seiki Soramoto — gather for a stump speech in Osaka on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 18, 2024
Four candidates vie for leadership of Nippon Ishin no Kai
The leadership race follows the resignation of incumbent leader Nobuyuki Baba over the party's lackluster performance in the Oct. 27 general election.
Democratic Party for the People head Yuichiro Tamaki speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Nov. 8.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 15, 2024
DPP leader clashes with governors over tax-free income limit
Prefectural governors fear that raising the ¥1.03 million limit would means less central government tax money for local services.
Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura speaks to reporters in Osaka on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 12, 2024
Osaka governor announces candidacy for Nippon Ishin leadership
Hirofumi Yoshimura said he has decided to run due to a sense that the party is now in crisis.
DPP leader Yuichiro Tamaki speaks to reporters on Monday at parliament.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 11, 2024
Head of key opposition DPP admits affair ahead of parliament vote for PM
Yuichiro Tamaki admitted to the affair after a tabloid reported on the relationship, jeopardizing his future in the party and any tie-ups with the LDP and Komeito.
Nippon Ishin no Kai leader Nobuyuki Baba (right) and Secretary-General Fumitake Fujita speak to reporters in the city of Osaka on Oct. 31.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 7, 2024
Nippon Ishin's Nobuyuki Baba to resign as party chief over election shortcomings
The party had failed to make gains beyond its regional base of Kansai and ended the election with fewer Lower House seats than before.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to reporters at the Prime Minister's Office on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 4, 2024
Horse-trading continues ahead of next week's prime minister vote
In the absence of a majority by any single party or coalition, every lawmaker's vote will count in a widely expected runoff election when parliament reconvenes.
Democratic Party for the People Secretary-General Kazuya Shimba (left) and Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama meet in the Diet building in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 31, 2024
LDP and DPP inch closer together on economic policy cooperation
If their arrangement is successful, it would mean a majority of parliamentary votes for issues especially important to the DPP.
Democratic Party for the People leader Yuichiro Tamaki speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Sunday. Tamaki has not taken sides at the moment, saying only that his party will cooperate with those who are willing to cooperate with it to implement its policies.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 28, 2024
DPP's quadrupling of seats burnishes its potential as a coalition partner
The question now is whether it will join a battered Liberal Democratic Party-Komeito coalition or work with a strengthened Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.
Hokkaido Gov. Naomichi Suzuki helped mark the first seven decades of the America-Japan Society of Hokkaido on Sept. 19.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Oct 28, 2024
America-Japan Society of Hokkaido celebrates 70th anniversary
The society is poised for further growth, with more firms from the U.S. and elsewhere looking to set up shop in Hokkaido.
Komeito chief Keiichi Ishii leaves the party's headquarters in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward on Sunday. Ishii, who was elected party president just one month ago, failed to secure a seat in the Upper House election.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 28, 2024
Komeito chief's Lower House loss raises questions about party's future
Keiichi Ishii, who was elected party leader last month and did not stand for proportional representation, fell short in his bid to win a Saitama district seat.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba arrives to deliver a campaign speech in Osaka on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 23, 2024
Polls show Japan's ruling bloc could lose its majority. What would happen then?
Depending on the final count, one option for the LDP and Komeito might be to invite another party into a coalition.
Former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi stumps in the city of Nara on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 22, 2024
With her sights set on Ishiba's throne, will Takaichi take over the LDP?
Anything less than a comfortable victory in Sunday's general election will put the prime minister in a vulnerable position.
Komeito leader Keiichi Ishii shakes hands with a voter in his district in Saitama Prefecture on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 21, 2024
Komeito's new leader faces trial by fire in general election
Once local allies, Komeito and Nippon Ishin no Kai are going head-to-head for the first time ever, adding to the challenge facing Keiichi Ishii.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (center right) makes a speech Sunday in Soka, Saitama Prefecture, along with Komeito leader Keiichi Ishii (center left).
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 14, 2024
General election campaigning to kick off Tuesday
Rocked by a political funds scandal that engulfed the party and led to the dissolution of most of its factions, the LDP faces its toughest election since 2012.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba chairs an Asia Zero Emission Community meeting in Vientiane, Laos, on Friday.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy / OUR PLANET
Oct 13, 2024
Where does Shigeru Ishiba stand on the climate issue?
Ishiba appears to be charting a new course on renewable energy, especially with a nascent effort to tap Japan's bountiful geothermal potential.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to reporters at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 9, 2024
LDP pulls endorsements of 12 'slush fund' lawmakers for Oct. 27 election
Former LDP policy chief Koichi Hagiuda, ex-party Diet affairs chief Tsuyoshi Takagi and former education minister Hakubun Shimomura are among those not endorsed.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks during a Lower House session on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 7, 2024
Ishiba fends off questions on endorsement of scandal-tainted LDP members
The prime minister was grilled in parliament on the extent of support the ruling party will give those implicated in a recent slush funds scandal in upcoming polls.
Nippon Ishin no Kai head Nobuyuki Baba (back left) and Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan head Yoshihiko Noda (back right) discuss cooperation during the upcoming general election in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 4, 2024
Opposition parties have little time to form united front ahead of polls
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s surprise announcement of an Oct. 27 general election has left others scrambling to coordinate in order to avoid multi-cornered fights.
New Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (front center) and other Cabinet ministers pose for a commemorative photo after an appointment and certification ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 1, 2024
New Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba unveils Cabinet as LDP divide emerges
His Cabinet, made up of lawmakers largely untainted by an LDP political funds scandal, has appeared to open up a rift in the ruling party.
Shigeru Ishiba, the new head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, speaks during a news conference at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 30, 2024
Incoming PM Ishiba sets Oct. 27 as date for snap election
The newly elected Liberal Democratic Party president's announcement is highly unusual and not without controversy.
Ishiba delays meeting with Trump, citing legal restrictions
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba waves upon arrival for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, in Callao, Peru, on Friday.
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Rising sex tourism exposes loopholes in Japan's anti-prostitution law
While financial misfortunes during the COVID-19 pandemic may have driven some women to work the streets, others simply want more money to spend — or want to pay off their debts — at host clubs.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
Ruling coalition and DPP strike last-minute deal over economic policy
DPP policy chief Makoto Mahaguchi speaks at the party's policy gathering in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.
Japanese expats in Asia find community through rugby
The Taiwan Fivewoods celebrate their victory at the 2023 Asian Japanese Rugby Cup in December of last year.
In Fukushima, a weekend of prose, poetry and translation
Aomori-based writer JJ Carter presented on tabletop gaming as creative inspiration for building characters and narratives.
For Dr. Nakamats, aging is just experience in action
Though he didn't win the recent gubernatorial election in Tokyo, the 96-year-old Dr. Nakamats' run was seen as inspirational in Japan's aging society.

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