Japanese PM Kishida seeks mandate as citizens ready to vote in general elections tomorrow

Japan’s newly elected Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is seeking a mandate for his COVID-19 and economic policies in the general elections set to take place on Sunday, 31 October. The political leaders in the country made their final appeals to the voters on Saturday, 30 October, Kyodo News reported. 

Kishida’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its coalition partner Komeito are seeking to retain a majority in the country’s 465-seat lower house of the parliament. However, the fate of the House of Representatives now depends on several dozens of crucial constituencies in Japan. The upcoming general elections are also the first major political test of Kishida after acquiring office on 4 October. 

In the final speech from Saitama Prefecture's Higashimatsuyama in Japan, the Japanese PM pledged to secure more hospital beds for COVID-19 patients and kickstart the administration of coronavirus vaccine booster shots by December. Seeking a mandate, Kishida has also vowed to get Japan's economy back on track, which is also the world’s third-largest. As per the Japanese media outlet, he also pledged to increase middle-class incomes. 

To a crowd of nearly 2,000, Kishida said, “We will revive the Japanese economy and make sure the fruits are enjoyed by everyone, not just a chosen few...The opposition is only thinking about redistribution, but (without growth) there will eventually be nothing to distribute,” according to the report. 

LDP’s opposition criticises ‘Abenomics’ policies

LDP’s opposition parties include the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDPJ), who reportedly argued that the “Abenomics” policies pursued by Kishida’s predecessors have only fueled corporate earnings and spiked shared prices but failed to get an increase in wages. 

The former foreign minister, Kishida is the third PM of Japan in just over a year. He succeeded Yoshihide Suga who came after Shinzo Abe. The Constitutional Democratic Party also reportedly criticised the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic as “behind the curve.”

Addressing a crowd in Kanagawa Prefecture, CDPJ leader Yukio Edano was quoted by a media outlet as saying, “Politics exists to protect lives and livelihoods...We have continued to make proposals for change. It's up to you to make a change.”

(IMAGE: AP)