Keiichi Ishii, new head of Komeito, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's ally, sees 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.
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.
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