The ruling Liberal Democratic Party is still feeling the pressure over the next general election even after Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike, supported by the LDP, won a landslide victory in Sunday's gubernatorial election by beating rivals including one backed by opposition parties.
Koike won a third term mainly by highlighting her achievements during her two four-year terms. The LDP refrained from giving an official endorsement to Koike, apparently out of consideration for her being impacted by the public's anti-LDP sentiment over its high-profile slush funds scandal.
In Sunday's by-elections for the Tokyo metropolitan assembly, the LDP suffered a major defeat, following a series of losses in recent national and local elections, a fresh cause of concern for the party over the next election of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of Japan's parliament.