Japan’s ruling party, led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, is set to seal a decisive win in Sunday’s snap election, exit polls suggest.
The country’s first female prime minister is seeking a clear public mandate just four months after becoming Liberal Democrat Party (LDP) leader.
Her predicted success is in marked contrast to her two predecessors, under whom the party lost its parliamentary majority because of corruption scandals and rising costs.
An LDP-led coalition has governed Japan for much of its post-war history due to the lack of a strong opposition.
Takaichi has pledged to step down if her party fails to secure a majority, and some have called the snap election a big gamble.
In 2024 the LDP lost its majority in both houses of parliament, and its decades-old coalition with the Komeito party collapsed.
But Takaichi’s personal popularity appears to have helped the party, with approval ratings for her government mostly hovering above 70%.
The LDP and its current coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, could secure as many as 366 of the 465 seats in the House of Representatives, according to a poll by broadcaster NHK.
People across Japan braved snow to vote in the country’s first mid-winter poll in 36 years.
