Democratic Party of Japan

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Japan's Right Scores Election Win

Former PM Shinzo Abe likely to return to power

(Newser) - Japanese public broadcaster NHK is projecting that the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party has won a clear majority in parliamentary elections. NHK said today that its exit polls show that the conservative LDP, which ruled Japan for most of the post-World War II era, won between 275 and 300 seats...

Japan Minister Quits Over Nuke Joke

PM moves quickly to quell gaffe fallout

(Newser) - Japan still isn't laughing about the devastating nuclear meltdown at Fukushima Dai-ichi, but its newest ex-minister of the nuclear industry apparently thinks it's quite amusing. After returning from a trip to Fukushima on Thursday, Yoshio Hachiro reportedly rubbed against a journalist, joking, "I'll give you radiation....

Noda Gain: Japan Gets 6th Leader in 5 Years

Former finance minister picked for country's top job

(Newser) - Yoshihiko Noda is Japan's new prime minister and he has some tough challenges ahead of him, not least of which is unifying his own bickering party. Noda, formerly the country's finance minister, was elected as leader today by the country's parliament, winning majorities both in the lower...

Japanese Party Honcho Indicted

Divisive decision could push Japan toward new election

(Newser) - The man behind the Japanese ruling party’s historic 2009 victory has been indicted for misreporting political funds. The move could expand divisions among members of the Democratic Party of Japan and help drive the opposition’s push for a new election, the New York Times reports. Ichiro Ozawa may...

Japan's Ruling Party Loses Majority
 Japan's 
 Ruling Party 
 Loses Majority 
EXIT POLLS SAY
Jul 11, 2010 6:41 AM CDT

Japan's Ruling Party Loses Majority

Loses grip on upper house, retains more powerful lower house

(Newser) - Japanese media are projecting that the ruling Democrats lost seats in a parliamentary election, dealing a setback to the progressive party's 10-month old government. Public broadcaster NHK predicted that the Democratic Party of Japan won less than 50 contested seats in today's upper house election, down from 54 before the...

Japanese PM Quits Over Okinawa Base

Hatoyama cites failure to move US base as reason for resigning

(Newser) - Japan's Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama is stepping down after just 8 months in office. Hatoyama—whose plunging approval ratings ahead of an election expected to be held in July put him under intense pressure from his Democratic Party of Japan to step down—said he was quitting because of a...

Gates Warns Japan Not to Back Out of Troop Deal

Relationship with Asian ally increasingly strained

(Newser) - All is not well between the US and Japan. Yesterday Robert Gates warned the country of serious consequences if it backs out of a troop movement deal the two countries spent 10 years negotiating. Japan’s new ruling party wants to reopen those negotiations, as it moves to redefine its...

'Princess Corps' Shakes Up Japanese Politics

New lawmakers include former sex industry reporter

(Newser) - A group of young, attractive female politicians are credited with helping the Democratic Party of Japan sweep to victory last month, but some of them are attracting more attention for their pasts than their policies. The DPJ's 26 new female members of parliament—dubbed the "Princess Corps" or "...

Hatoyama Confirmed as Japan's New PM

Shift in power marks end of 50 years of conservative rule

(Newser) - Japan's parliament formally voted in Yukio Hatoyama as the country's new prime minister today, ending an almost half-century of rule by the Liberal Democratic Party, CNN reports. The LDP's Taro Aso and his cabinet resigned en masse earlier in the day. Hatoyama's Democratic Party of Japan won a landslide election...

New Leader Hails Japanese 'Revolution'

Yukio Hatoyama gets to work after historic opposition victory

(Newser) - Japan's incoming prime minister hailed a democratic "revolution" as more complete results confirmed a sweeping victory for the center-left Democratic Party. Yukio Hatoyama will lead a bloc of more than 300 parliamentary members, more than three times its previous representation, after what the Times of London calls the...

Trounced, Japan's Ruling Party to Quit

Left-wing Democratic Party ousts Liberal Democrats

(Newser) - A top official in Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party has announced that he and other officials plan to step down after the party's apparent crushing defeat in today's parliamentary elections. LDP Secretary-General Hiroyuki Hosoda said that he and two other top officials plan to submit their resignations to Prime Minister...

Defeat All but Certain for Japan's Aso, Ruling Party

Sunday election likely to end 54 years in power

(Newser) - Sunday will likely mark a milestone in Japanese politics as voters dump the Liberal Democratic Party after more than a half-century in power, the Washington Post reports. Even senior LDP leaders acknowledge that Yukio Hatoyama will probably trounce incumbent Prime Minister Taro Aso, and polls predict a staggering turnout with...

Japan Faces Historic Change as Election Opens

(Newser) - Japanese PM Taro Aso dissolved parliament today to begin a watershed election that could break his party's 50-year grip on power, Reuters reports. In a nationwide TV address, Aso apologized for his shortcomings as a leader and for internal squabbling that cost his conservative party at recent local elections. Opposition...

Opposition Finally Backs New Chief for Bank of Japan

Shirakawa to fill critical spot as stalemate ends

(Newser) - The Democratic Party of Japan has accepted a new central banker just in time for the crucial meeting of G7 finance leaders in Washington on Friday, reports the International Business Times. The top spot has been vacant since March 19, leaving the bank vulnerable during an unsteady economic time. Masaaki...

Japanese Opposition Leader Un-Quits
Japanese Opposition Leader Un-Quits
Nov 6, 2007 12:20 PM CST

Japanese Opposition Leader Un-Quits

About-face after 2 days reflects party pressure, government turmoil

(Newser) - The leader of Japan's opposition party has withdrawn his resignation after 2 days of wrangling in the country's latest political crisis, Bloomberg reports. "This is truly embarrassing," a party official quoted Ichiro Ozawa as saying. The Democratic Party of Japan had asked Ozawa to reconsider, fearing a split...

Japanese Party Scrambles to Keep Boss to Dodge Chaos

Opposition chief to quit amid deadlock mess

(Newser) - Members of Japan's opposition party are pleading with their leader to rethink his announced resignation, fearing the move will break up the party and hurt its chances at the polls. The head of the Democratic Party of Japan said he would resign yesterday after the party leadership resoundingly voted to...

Japanese PM Backtracks From Hints He'll Quit

Abe ignores calls for resignation, says he'll stay to enact reforms

(Newser) - Shinzo Abe has backed off his threat to quit if Japan yanks aid to US-led troops in Afghanistan. Many clamored for the beleaguered PM to step down after his party’s defeat in July elections, and Abe hinted yesterday that he'd walk away—a possible indication that he was looking...

New Party in Japan Prompts US Anxiety

Election winners threaten to veto anti-terror measures

(Newser) - The ruling party’s losses in Japanese elections last week are causing worry in the White House and the Pentagon, says the Financial Times. An anti-terror measure that that has allowed Japanese ships to refuel American vessels is set to expire in November, and the Democratic Party of Japan is...

Japan Election Results Spell Big Trouble for PM

Party loses majority in upper house; Abe insists he won't resign

(Newser) - Shinzo Abe's scandal-plagued administration suffered a possible death blow today as his coalition lost its majority in the upper house of the Japanese parliament, but the beleaguered PM vowed to remain on the job. Although Abe's Liberal Democratic Party dominates the lower chamber, the opposition can stall legislation in the...

19 Stories