Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has dissolved the lower house of parliament, paving the way for a snap election on February 8.
The move is an attempt to capitalise on her popularity to help the governing party regain ground after major losses in recent years.
But it will delay a vote on a budget that aims to boost a struggling economy and address soaring prices.
Elected in October as Japan’s first female leader, Takaichi has been in office only three months, but she has seen strong approval ratings of about 70 per cent.
Takaichi is also seeing rising animosity with China since she made pro-Taiwan remarks.
And US President Donald Trump wants her to spend more on weapons as Washington and Beijing pursue military superiority in the region.
The dissolution of the 465-member lower house paves the way for a 12-day campaign that officially starts Tuesday.
Takaichi’s plan for an early election aims to expand a governing majority in the lower house, the more powerful of Japan’s two-chamber parliament.
The scandal-tainted LDP and its coalition have a slim majority in the lower house after an election loss in 2024.
The coalition does not have a majority in the upper house and relies on winning votes from opposition members to pass its agenda.
Opposition leaders criticised Takaichi for delaying the passage of a budget needed to fund key economic measures.
“I believe that the only option is for the people, as sovereign citizens, to decide whether Sanae Takaichi should be prime minister,” she told a news conference Monday when announcing plans for the election.
“I’m staking my career as prime minister (on it).”
A hardline conservative, Takaichi wants to highlight differences with her centrist predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba.
Takaichi stresses that voters need to judge her fiscal spending moves, further military build-up and tougher immigration policies to make Japan “strong and prosperous”.
While an upbeat and decisive image has earned her strong approval ratings, especially among younger people, the LDP is not popular as it recovers from a political funds scandal.
Many traditional LDP voters have shifted to emerging far-right populist opposition parties, such as the anti-globalist Sanseito.
Meanwhile, Japan faces escalating tensions with China after Takaichi made remarks suggesting that Japan could become involved if China takes military action against Taiwan, a self-governing island that Beijing claims as its own.
A furious China has increased economic and diplomatic retribution.
Takaichi wants to push further a military build-up and spending increases, while Trump has pressured Japan to spend more on defence.
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