After nearly two weeks of campaigning in a fiercely contested Lower House election, voters began heading to polls Sunday to deliver their verdict on Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s ability to govern Japan.
Polls opened at 7 a.m. through 8 p.m., with votes set to be counted immediately afterward to determine the winners.
Lower House elections — this one being the first since October 2017 — are seen as crucial moments on Japan’s political calendar because of the chamber’s power to override vetoes by the Upper House. Elections in the lower chamber are also required to be held once every four years, but the prime minister can call snap elections ahead of that schedule.