The House of Councilors voted down a nonbinding censure motion against Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Wednesday during the final throes of the six-month Diet session that ended later in the day.
The chamber also dismissed a no-confidence motion against Upper House President Hiroyuki Kurata via a majority vote by the ruling camp of the Liberal Democratic Party, New Komeito and the New Conservative Party.
"The Koizumi Cabinet should resign as soon as possible to wipe away the 'Koizumi recession' and relieve the pain of the people suffering from it," the motion stated.
The two motions were submitted Tuesday by the opposition parties Democratic Party of Japan, Liberal Party, Social Democratic Party and Japanese Communist Party.
"I am grateful that the three ruling parties voted against the motion in unity," Koizumi told reporters. "The opposition has its way of thinking."
On Tuesday, the opposition camp submitted a no-confidence motion against the Koizumi Cabinet, only to be voted down in the powerful Lower House.
The House of Representatives meanwhile formally gave the green light to carry over two sets of controversial bills -- those relating to attack responses and personal data protection -- to the next session, which convenes in the fall.