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July 05, 2025
 

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UPPER HOUSE ELECTION

As Japan heads into summer elections, debate over the consumption tax has intensified, with opposition parties demanding cuts to ease pressure on households and the government defending the levy as essential amid rising debt and economic uncertainty.
EDITORIALS
May 16, 2025
Don’t overreact to the consumption tax debate
Economic uncertainty in combination with rising prices are squeezing the budgets of households, businesses and the government.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 31, 2022
When will Kishida fully reopen Japan's borders?
A look at the political forces that have been driving Japan's draconian stance on incoming tourism for the past two years.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Aug 3, 2019
Low voter turnout in Upper House election may reflect an indifference to democracy
In May 1993, general elections were held in Cambodia. Voter turnout was 89.56 percent.
EDITORIALS
Jul 24, 2019
Reverse the fall in voter turnout
Both the campaign for the Upper House election and its outcome need to be reviewed to learn what can be done to increase voter participation in future elections.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 23, 2019
Voter disillusion tempered by realism
Despite Abe's electoral victory, the result is not an overwhelming mandate for transformative change.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 22, 2019
For Japan, Upper House results signal stability
The results of the Upper House elections promise exactly what Prime Minister Shinzo Abe campaigned upon: stability.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 22, 2019
Okinawa contradictions need to be fixed
The LDP has lost almost all elections in Okinawa despite the government's candidates consistently being the more qualified and experienced.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 17, 2019
School workshops that foster political engagement prove popular in Japan
Workshops at schools that use comedy or games to encourage young people to get involved in politics are becoming more widespread in Japan ahead of Sunday's House of Councilors election, the third national poll to be conducted since the lowering of the voting age from 20 to 18.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 8, 2019
Get ready for a Cabinet reshuffle
The Upper House election is unlikely to produce a significant change in the composition of the Diet, but it will still shape the near-term political landscape significantly.
EDITORIALS
Jul 11, 2016
Abe's new voter mandate
Prime Minister Abe should use his coalition's bolstered Diet majority to more effectively implement economic reforms, not to amend the Constitution.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 24, 2016
Author and disabilities champion Hirotada Ototake admits to adulterous affairs
In a blow that could further humiliate the scandal-tainted ruling party, disabled celebrity author and educator Hirotada Ototake, rumored to be tapped for an election run with the Liberal Democratic Party, apologized Thursday for committing adultery following a report by a tabloid magazine.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 30, 2016
DPJ looks to block LDP blitz
Japan's main opposition party vows to stop the ruling party from winning a critical election it sees as the last chance to preserve the postwar pacifist Constitution.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 12, 2016
Mayoral candidates in Okinawa face off over U.S. base
Less than two weeks remain until a local election that may influence both the planned relocation of the Futenma military base and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's effort to secure a two-thirds majority in this summer's Upper House election.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 11, 2016
Abe's constitutional revision hopes ride on July election, right-leaning opposition cooperation
Japan's postwar pacifism will face a critical challenge this year that could drastically change the course of this country forever: the July Upper House election.
EDITORIALS
Dec 25, 2015
Budgeting ahead of an election
The Abe administration appears to be sacrificing budgetary discipline in favor of doling out pork ahead of the Upper House election.
EDITORIALS
May 14, 2014
Redressing vote-value disparity
Lawmakers' personal interests should not be allowed to stand in the way of reforms to reduce the disparity in the value of votes.
CULTURE / Art / Japan Pulse
Aug 9, 2013
Japan by the numbers (8.9.13)
First check out these fresh stats, then let's think how to get the nutritional breakfast-focused mom percentage up to the LINE user percentage.
EDITORIALS
Jul 27, 2013
Annulling the Upper House poll
As soon as the results were announced for last week's Upper House election, lawsuits were filed demanding the nullifcation because of vote-vale disparities.
EDITORIALS
Jul 26, 2013
Internet campaign results
Japan's first use of the Internet for campaign purposes may have helped to inform voters but did not spur a higher voter turnout for the July 21 Upper House poll.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 26, 2013
Opposition disparate; foe common
Major opposition groups have been rocked by intensifying internal strife since the Upper House election, and with the secretaries-general of the Democratic Party of Japan, Your Party and Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) launching a nonpartisan policy study group next week, speculation is...
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Magnitude 5.5 earthquake jars Tokara Islands amid flurry of seismic activity
A strong quake struck off the Tokara Islands on Thursday afternoon, with the island chain having recorded around 1,000 earthquakes since a burst of seismic activity first began on June 21.
Japan to require flight passengers to keep power banks within sight
The transport ministry has announced new regulations requiring flight passengers to keep power banks within sight to mitigate fire risks while on board planes.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

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