By AFP and Focus | 2026-01-20

TOKYO -- Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has called a snap election for February 8, seeking a public mandate to cement an agenda focused on fiscal expansion and national security.

"Is Sanae Takaichi fit to be prime minister? I wanted to ask the sovereign people to decide," she told a news conference on January 19.

The lower house is set to be dissolved on January 23, followed by a formal campaign period beginning January 27, with voting and ballot counting scheduled for February 8.

Takaichi took office last October.

After setting the election timetable, Takaichi signaled she plans to move quickly while her cabinet approval ratings remain high. Her goal is to expand the ruling coalition's footprint in parliament, providing the political capital necessary to advance a proactive fiscal policy and a more assertive national security posture.

As Japan's first female leader, Takaichi is banking on her personal popularity to revitalize the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). The party has governed Japan almost uninterrupted for decades but has struggled with sagging public support and frequent leadership turnovers in recent years.

Success is not guaranteed. Takaichi's ruling bloc, which now includes the Japan Innovation Party, holds only a slim majority in the powerful lower house. This narrow margin could complicate her more ambitious goals, such as significantly increasing defense spending.

"If the LDP can get a majority by itself in the lower house, that'll help her pursue policies" without concessions to other parties, said Sadafumi Kawato, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Tokyo.

However, opposition parties said dissolving the lower house risks delaying policy action, with Jun Azumi of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP) saying it would "sacrifice livelihoods."

Masaaki Tokuno, a 64-year-old bicycle lot manager, told AFP that "carrying out policies to tackle inflation should be first, before holding the election."

Meanwhile, Takaichi said she would cut a tax on food for two years to "alleviate the burden" on Japanese struggling with inflation.

She has pushed for swift parliamentary approval of a record 122.3-trillion-JPY ($768 billion) budget for the fiscal year starting in April, arguing Japan must act fast to counter rising prices and shore up the world's fourth-largest economy.

"We have a responsibility to overcome the shackles of excessive austerity and take immediate action against the crisis at hand," she told reporters.

China spat

A snap election may help Takaichi break the deadlock in a spat with China, increasing her leverage by showing she has strong support at home, analysts said.

Ties between Tokyo and Beijing have deteriorated since Takaichi suggested in November that Japan could intervene militarily if China ever attacked Taiwan, the self-ruled island that China claims.

China has since announced a broad ban on exports to Japan of "dual-use" goods with potential military applications and has reportedly restricted exports of rare earth products used in everything from electric cars to missiles.

Takaichi criticized "economic pressure tactics" affecting Japan, without explicitly referring to China.

If Takaichi wins, China could intensify pressure to send voters "the message that supporting a hawkish leader could lead to pain," Mikitaka Masuyama, dean of Japan's National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies, said.

Sixty percent of respondents in a poll by the Asahi newspaper said they were worried about the economic impact of worsening Japan-China relations.

Under Takaichi's predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba, the LDP and its former long-term coalition partner Komeito lost their majority in both chambers in the past two national elections, most recently in the July upper house election.

The July vote led Ishiba to step down, while smaller parties gained ground, including the populist Sanseito, which called immigration a "silent invasion," even though foreign-born residents comprise only 3% of the population.

Komeito and the CDP have agreed to work together to challenge Takaichi, betting their cooperation can attract swing voters.

Calling an election early is always a gamble. "We aim to secure a majority as the ruling coalition. I am also prepared to stake my own future as prime minister on the outcome," said Takaichi.