What to expect after Takaichi’s election victoryBy Tomohiko TaniguchiJapanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has just scored an unprecedented victory in the country’s general election. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which she leads, won 316 seats in the 465-member Japanese House of Representatives (the Japanese Diet’s lower house), up sharply from 198. With that, there was no guarantee that she could secure a majority in the lower house to become prime minister. Unlike the lower house, the Diet’s upper house cannot be dissolved by the prime minister. Tomohiko Taniguchi, a former special adviser to late Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, is chairman of Nippon Kaigi (Japan Conference), a conservative lobbying organization.

Source: Taipei Times February 10, 2026 17:21 UTC