Economy | ANALYSIS
Households to take hit from tax hike
by Tomoko Otake
The consumption tax increase will hit every household in Japan hard, with many people’s financial future hanging on whether their wages rise enough to offset the hike's impact.
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 18, 2012
North Korea, China pose diplomatic hurdles for Abe
by Ko Hirano
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un entered his second year in power Monday, the first anniversary of the death of his father and longtime ruler Kim Jong Il. Like it was under his predecessor, the Pyongyang regime continues to pose a security threat to ...
Business | ELECTION 2012 Dec 18, 2012
Torrent of support for LDP clears pipes for fiscal spigot
The magnitude of the Liberal Democratic Party’s win in Sunday’s general election smooths the path for fiscal stimulus in early 2013 as incoming Prime Minister Shinzo Abe seeks to end the economy’s contraction. The two-thirds majority won by the LDP-New Komeito coalition in the ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 18, 2012
After bout of confusion, Nippon Ishin agrees to nominate Ishihara for prime minister
Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) ironed out a fresh rift Monday by deciding to vote for party chief Shintaro Ishihara when the Diet nominates candidates for prime minister on Dec. 26, a senior party official said Monday. Osaka Gov. Ichiro Matsui, Nippon ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 18, 2012
China paper warns of Abe's hard line
A Chinese Communist Party newspaper, in the editorial of its Monday edition, warned against the hardline stance of Liberal Democratic Party leader Shinzo Abe, who is set to become the next prime minister. China will be closely watching how Japan’s next administration, to be ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 17, 2012
LDP flattens DPJ in bruising return to power
The Liberal Democratic Party-New Komeito alliance won 325 seats in the Lower House — a supermajority that would allow it to override Upper House vetoes — as it reclaims power after three years in the opposition. The LDP victory ends the government led by ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 17, 2012
Architects of DPJ effort accept blame for loss
by Masami Ito
The air was filled with doom at the Democratic Party of Japan’s campaign center Sunday evening as the ruling party came to grips with its sobering defeat in the Lower House election. While the Liberal Democratic Party swept to victory with New Komeito, many ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 17, 2012
Inose cruises to victory in Tokyo governor's race
Naoki Inose, the prizewinning writer who became a Tokyo vice governor in 2007, was elected the capital’s next governor Sunday. The 66-year-old Inose, named by Shintaro Ishihara as his favored candidate when he stepped down as governor in October to run for the Diet, ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 17, 2012
Snoozing staff delay vote in Akita, Gifu
The start of voting Sunday was delayed in the cities of Akita and Gifu as the custodians of the ballot slips overslept for the House of Representatives election. About 10 voters in Akita and two in Gifu went home without casting ballots after waiting ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 17, 2012
Zero nuclear goal looks vulnerable
The recently compiled energy strategy aimed at phasing out nuclear power by the 2030s is likely to be revised under the next government, expected to be led by the Liberal Democratic Party, which has been critical of the push to completely abandon atomic energy ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 17, 2012
Loss of Niigata seat puts end to 'Tanaka Empire'
Former education minister Makiko Tanaka of the Democratic Party of Japan lost her seat in Niigata Prefecture in Sunday’s general election. Tanaka’s defeat to Liberal Democratic Party contender Tadayoshi Nagashima in the No. 5 district was mostly due to her weakening support from local, ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 17, 2012
For Tokyo, Osaka voters, election revolved around economy
The multitude of parties and issues on the table Sunday made it difficult for voters to make up their minds, according to those who spoke with The Japan Times on the streets of Tokyo and Osaka. As with earlier opinion polls leading up to ...
National | ELECTION 2012 Dec 17, 2012
Nippon Ishin falls short, readies for next race
by Eric Johnston
Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) picked up only 54 seats in the Lower House election, a far cry from the hundreds of seats party leaders had hoped for. But party leaders were already looking ahead to the next Upper House election, and ...