After the Shiga gubernatorial election earlier this month, in which Taizo Mikazuki, the hand-picked successor to former Gov. Yukiko Kada, defeated the ruling coalition's candidate, certain media agencies and pundits suggested that collective self-defense had no impact on the race.

Such arguments were factually correct. Exit polls showed that pocketbook issues, name recognition and even questions about nuclear power weighed more heavily on voters' minds than collective self-defense, per se. But what the analysts overlooked was how Abe's handling of the sensitive debate and his push for a Cabinet decision impacted the election.

Voters objected to Abe's strong-arm tactics, as did his Liberal Democratic Party's coalition partner, pacifist New Komeito.