The view that it will be difficult for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to dissolve the House of Representatives for a general election during the current session of parliament is spreading within his ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which suffered another election defeat on Sunday.
"We will fully analyze" the result of the gubernatorial election in Shizuoka Prefecture, Kishida said Monday.
Regarding a possible Lower House dissolution, "we are doing our best to achieve results by focusing on political reform and issues that cannot be postponed. ... I'm not considering anything else," the prime minister said.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.