Japan's ruling party wins a supermajority in country's lower house

+ Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu Newsletters NPR Shop Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music The Best Music of 2025 All Songs Considered Tiny Desk Music Features Live Sessions Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Fresh Air Up First Featured Embedded The NPR Politics Podcast Throughline Trump's Terms More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop The Best Music of 2025 All Songs Considered Tiny Desk Music Features Live Sessions About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Japan's ruling party wins a supermajority in country's lower house Japan's ruling party scored its biggest electoral win in its seven-decade history Sunday, due mostly to the popularity of its first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi. World Japan's ruling party wins a supermajority in country's lower house February 9, 20266:48 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition

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+ MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Japan's first female prime minister gambled that she could use her popularity to revive her ruling party. Her bet paid off, and she scored the party's biggest landslide ever in snap elections on Sunday. NPR's Anthony Kuhn has more. ANTHONY KUHN, BYLINE: Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pinned rosettes above the names of winning candidates for the House of Representatives at Liberal Democratic Party headquarters. The LDP had lost two previous elections in a row. But Sophia University political scientist Koichi Nakano says that Takaichi appeared to voters to offer something new. KOICHI NAKANO: Compared to her predecessors, of course, she projects a fresh image because her predecessors are all dull, old men in gray suits. KUHN: The LDP won a two-thirds majority in the lower House, enough to override vetoes by the opposition-controlled upper House. A new center left coalition, meanwhile, lost more than half of its seats. Takaichi will likely take this as a mandate to pursue her conservative agenda, including more defense spending and possibly revising Japan's pacifist constitution. Jeffrey Hornung is a Japan expert with the RAND Corporation. JEFFREY HORNUNG: It's really amazing given that she's only been prime minister since October, and to already be in control of this much political capital. KUHN: Japan's stock market climbed to new highs in anticipation of Takaichi's stimulus spending and tax cuts. President Trump congratulated Takaichi and will host her at the White House next month. Takaichi is currently at odds with China over her comments that a Chinese blockade of Taiwan could trigger a Japanese military response. She might ask Trump for help with that. Jeffrey Hornung says Takaichi may face U.S. demands for Japan to contribute more to their alliance. HORNUNG: She can't say anymore, well, I can't do that because the opposition parties will turn it down. I mean, she has the numbers to pass policies and do things. KUHN: China could choose to wait Takaichi out. But that could take a while as she doesn't appear to be going anywhere soon. Anthony Kuhn, NPR News, Seoul. (SOUNDBITE OF LOWERCASE NOISES' "THE HUNGRY YEARS") Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor MessageBecome

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