Keiichi Ishii, new head of Komeito, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's ally, sees a maintaining at least a majority of seats in the Lower House as the make-or-break line for the ruling coalition in the upcoming general election.
In a recent interview, Ishii offered the view that public criticism of the LDP's political funds scandal remains too severe to allow the ruling bloc to enjoy a big victory in the Oct. 27 snap election for the all-important lower chamber of Japan's parliament.
Although media polls showed that LDP government approval ratings had rebounded to around 50% after Shigeru Ishiba became prime minister earlier this month, "the tough situation hasn't changed for the LDP and Komeito," he 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.