January 16, 2026
TOKYO – Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has effectively fired the starting gun for preparations for the next general election.
On Wednesday, Takaichi informed executives of the ruling parties about her intention to dissolve the House of Representatives at an early date in the upcoming ordinary Diet session. The prime minister took this step after deciding that the parties need to get preparations into full swing, given that the period between the dissolution and voting is set to be the shortest of any election held after World War II.
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, will now accelerate moves to put forward candidates and draw up campaign pledges.
Takaichi had initially been poised to put off any dissolution announcement for the time being, partly due to her busy diplomatic schedule that includes a visit by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. She also wanted to allow a calm setting for the memorial services that will be held Saturday to mark the anniversary of the Great Hanshin Earthquake.
However, a senior LDP official told The Yomiuri Shimbun that many party members felt concerned that this approach meant they “could not officially start” getting ready for the election and that “there wouldn’t be enough time to print manifesto materials and other documents.”
An LDP heavyweight also directly gave Takaichi some candid advice that she “should at least tell the parties’ secretaries general” about her dissolution plans.
Takaichi’s hefty influence
The LDP has largely completed its work to find and field candidates. On Tuesday, the party’s top executives issued a notice in the names of the secretary general and the Election Strategy Committee chairperson directing LDP prefectural chapters to fill any constituencies that are still lacking a candidate by Monday. The notice stated that if the chapters were unable to meet this deadline, party headquarters intended to decide on suitable candidates.
The LDP plans to not field candidates in constituencies held by Komeito lawmakers who have been exploring ways to cooperate with its former coalition partner. “Apart from those seats, the number of unfilled constituencies is in single figures,” a senior official of the election committee said.
The LDP is tipped to heavily feature Takaichi’s preferences in its campaign pledges. A senior official of the party’s Policy Research Council said, “We’ll listen to the prime minister’s thoughts, and then determine the main policy planks.” The content of these policies could be nailed down as soon as the first half of next week.
In a public opinion poll conducted by The Yomiuri Shimbun, the most common reason respondents cited for supporting Takaichi was “high expectations for her policies.” Opposition parties have pushed back fiercely against Takaichi’s flagship policies, such as those on foreign residents and the strengthening of the nation’s intelligence gathering and analysis capabilities.
“If we can gain more public support in the election, it’ll become easier to move ahead with those policies,” a close aide to Takaichi said.
JIP, LDP to face off
The JIP has already decided to field just under 80 candidates in single-seat constituencies. The party does not plan, in principle, to coordinate with the LDP on whether to field candidates in certain electoral districts.
“We said we would both compete in this election,” JIP leader Hirofumi Yoshimura said to reporters after meeting with Takaichi on Wednesday. “That’s how our new coalition operates.”
According to Yomiuri Shimbun tallies, the LDP and the JIP will field competing candidates in about 65 constituencies, including 11 in the JIP’s home turf of Osaka and eight in Hyogo Prefecture.
Several local assembly members of the JIP were recently found to have avoided paying national health insurance premiums. This scandal could hurt the JIP in the election, especially if the party also joins opposition parties in clashing head-on with the LDP.
“The JIP would inevitably face an uphill battle in areas except for Osaka,” a midranking JIP lawmaker said, sharing a view widely held within the party.