dpa
Tokyo
Significant losses were emerging on Sunday for the ruling party of new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in the Japanese House of Representatives election.
Ishiba’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) appears to have lost its majority in the powerful chamber of the national parliament, according to Japanese media reports based on voter surveys conducted after the polls closed. It initially remained unclear whether the LDP, together with its smaller coalition partner Komeito, would be able to secure a majority.
The largest opposition party, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, led by former prime minister Yoshihiko Noda, has reportedly made significant gains. The LDP, which has governed almost without interruption for decades, has been shaken by a party donation scandal.
Pre-election polls had already suggested that the coalition might struggle to achieve the 233 seats required for a majority in the chamber.
