Prime Minister Shinzo Abe does not plan to resign even if his ruling party fares badly in this weekend's House of Councilors election, his top spokesman said Tuesday.
Abe is under intense pressure to shore up the Liberal Democratic Party ahead of the election for half of the seats in the Upper House. But with support ratings sagging and his Cabinet hobbled by scandals, Abe is expected to face a tough challenge from the opposition, particularly the conservative Democratic Party of Japan.
The LDP and its coalition partner, New Komeito, need to win 64 of the 121 seats up for grabs in Sunday's election to maintain their Upper House majority. The remaining 121 of the chamber's 242 seats are not up for election. The ruling bloc currently controls the chamber with a combined 132 seats.