The Democratic Party of Japan scored big gains in the House of Councilors election Sunday and was poised to outperform Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's Liberal Democratic Party in the number of seats won.
The LDP appeared to have fallen short of its target of winning 51 seats, but the party's ruling alliance with New Komeito retained a solid majority in the 242-seat Upper House.
Of the 117 seats whose results were known as of press time, the LDP had won 48 against the 49 captured by the DPJ. The DPJ was poised to eventually outnumber the LDP in the remaining seats contested in proportional representation.