Support for the Democratic Party of Japan has surpassed that for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party for the first time in six years, according to a Kyodo News poll.
The nationwide telephone survey conducted Friday and Saturday shows that support for the DPJ rose to 28.8 percent, up 1 percentage point from the previous poll. The rating for the LDP fell by 0.9 point to 27.9 percent.
The last time support for the DPJ topped that for the LDP in a Kyodo survey was shortly after Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi took office in July 1998.
According to the survey, support for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's Cabinet recovered to 45.3 percent, up 6.4 points from the previous survey after the July House of Councilors election. But the disapproval rating remained higher at 47.2 percent.
By age group, support for the DPJ exceeded that for the LDP among people in their 50s or younger.
The poll covered 1,069 people.