Sanae Takaichi tops favorability among House of Representatives candidates; 55% support constitutional revision

TOKYO – According to Financial News correspondent Seo Hye-jin, Sanae Takaichi, Japan’s prime minister and president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), ranked first in a favorability survey of party leaders conducted among candidates running in the House of Representatives election scheduled for February 8.
In a questionnaire Yomiuri Shimbun carried out on February 4 targeting candidates for the House of Representatives election, respondents were asked to rate their favorability toward leaders of both ruling and opposition parties on a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 indicated strong dislike and 10 indicated strong liking. Takaichi, as LDP president, came in first with an average score of 5.6.
Among LDP candidates, Takaichi received an average favorability score of 9.7. She also scored highly with candidates from the Japan Restoration Party, the LDP’s coalition partner, earning an average of 8.6. Strong ratings from opposition parties such as the Democratic Party for the People (DPFP) at 6.0 and Sanseitō at 5.5 further lifted her overall average.
By comparison, then–Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who was LDP president at the time of last year’s House of Councillors election, received an average score of 3.6. The results suggest that the change in prime minister and the accompanying policy shift are being viewed positively.
Ranking second was Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the DPFP, with an average score of 4.9. He enjoyed high favorability among LDP members, who are exploring a coalition, and within the Centrist Reform Alliance (CRA), which had invited him to join when it was first formed.
Yoshihiko Noda, co-leader of the CRA, which serves as the largest opposition bloc formed by Komeito and the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP), placed fifth with a score of 4.2. While his rating within his own party was very high at 9.5, he failed to gain favor outside it. In particular, candidates from the Japanese Communist Party (JCP) gave him ratings close to outright dislike.
Yomiuri commented that "the results reveal that his centripetal force as leader of the largest opposition party has not risen sufficiently."
Takahiro Anno of Team Mirai ranked third with 4.8 points, while Hirofumi Yoshimura of the Japan Restoration Party came in fourth with 4.3.
Meanwhile, the same survey found that 55% of respondents support revising Japan’s Constitution, far outnumbering the 24% who oppose it.
By party, 98% of LDP candidates said they favor constitutional revision, and support was 100% among candidates from the Japan Restoration Party, the LDP’s coalition partner. In the DPFP as well, 91% expressed support.
Within the CRA, 36% backed revision, slightly higher than the 32% who opposed it. Every responding candidate from the JCP and the Social Democratic Party (SDP) said they were against constitutional change.
Among candidates who support revision, the most frequently cited priority was adding an explicit constitutional basis for the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF), chosen by 80%. This was followed by introducing an emergency-conditions clause at 65%, and eliminating the merged electoral districts for the House of Councillors at 38%.
In addition, roughly 40% of candidates from both the LDP and the DPFP said they hope to form a partnership after the election.
Yomiuri analyzed the results by noting, "Even if the LDP joins forces with the Japan Restoration Party, its coalition partner, the two still fall short of a majority in the House of Councillors. This appears to be why the LDP is eager to secure cooperation from the DPFP in order to ensure stable governance."

sjmary@fnnews.com Seo Hye-jin Reporter