Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)

Japanese political party

Not to be confused with Democratic Liberal Party (Japan); Democratic Party (Japan, 2016); Liberal Party (Japan, 1998); or Liberal Party (Japan, 2016).

Liberal Democratic Party
自由民主党

Jiyū-Minshutō

Abbreviation| LDP
Lib Dems[1]
Jimintō
President| Shigeru Ishiba
Vice President| Yoshihide Suga
Secretary-General| Hiroshi Moriyama
Founders|

* Ichiro Hatoyama
* Taketora Ogata

Founded| 15 November 1955; 69 years ago (1955-11-15)
Merger of|

* Liberal Party
* Japan Democratic Party

Headquarters| 11–23, Nagatachō 1-chome, Chiyoda, Tokyo 100-8910, Japan
Newspaper| Jiyu Minshu[2]
Student wing| LDP Students Division[3]
Youth wing| LDP Youth [ja]
Membership|  1,091,075 (2023 est.)
Ideology|

* Conservatism (Japanese)
* Japanese nationalism

Political position| Right-wing[A][4]
Colours|

* Red (official)[a][5]
* Green (customary)[b]

Slogan| 日本を守る。成長を力に。
Nihon o mamoru. Seichō o chikara ni.
('Protect Japan. Turn growth into strength.')[6]
Anthem| "We"[c][7]
Councillors|

114 / 248

Representatives|

196 / 465

Prefectures[8]|

1,301 / 2,644

Municipalities[8]|

2,137 / 29,135

Election symbol

Alternative symbol

Party flag
Website

* Japanese
* www.jimin.jp
* English
* www.jimin.jp/english/

* Politics of Japan
* Political parties
* Elections

* * *

^ A: The Liberal Democratic Party is a big-tent conservative party (see factions table below).[9][10] The LDP has also been described as centre-right,[11] but the LDP has far-right[12][13] and ultraconservative[14] factions, including members belonging to the ultranationalist Nippon Kaigi.

The Liberal Democratic Party (自由民主党, Jiyū-Minshutō), frequently abbreviated to LDP or Jimintō (自民党), is a major conservative[15] and nationalist[16] political party in Japan. Since its foundation in 1955, the LDP has been in power almost continuously—a period called the 1955 System—except between 1993 and 1994, and again from 2009 to 2012.

The LDP was formed in 1955 as a merger of two conservative parties, the Liberal Party and the Japan Democratic Party, and was initially led by prime minister Ichirō Hatoyama. The LDP supported Japan's alliance with the United States and fostered close links between Japanese business and government, playing a major role in the country's economic miracle from the 1960s to 1980s under prime ministers including Hayato Ikeda, Eisaku Satō, Kakuei Tanaka, and Yasuhiro Nakasone. Scandals and economic difficulties led to the LDP losing power between 1993 and 1994, and governing under a non-LDP prime minister from 1994 to 1996. The LDP regained stability during the premiership of Junichiro Koizumi in the 2000s before achieving its worst-ever electoral result in the 2009 election. The party regained control of the government in a landslide victory at the 2012 election under Shinzo Abe. After the 2024 and 2022 elections the LDP currently holds 191 seats in the House of Representatives and 119 seats in the House of Councillors; the party has governed in coalition with Komeito since 1999. Since the 2017 general election, the Constitutional Democratic Party (CDP) has been its primary opponent in national politics.

The LDP is often described as a big tent conservative party, including factions that range from moderate conservatism to right-wing nationalism.[17] Although lacking a cohesive political ideology, the party's platform has historically supported increased defense spending and, since the 21st century, maintaining close relations with its Indo-Pacific allies to counter the rise of China as a superpower.[18] The party's history and internal composition has been characterized by intense factionalism among its members since its emergence in 1955. Shigeru Ishiba, Japan's incumbent prime minister, has served as party president since 27 September 2024.

## History

[edit]

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### Beginnings

[edit]

Launching convention, 15 November 1955

The LDP was formed in 1955[19] as a merger between two of Japan's political parties, the Liberal Party (自由党, Jiyutō, 1950–1955, led by Taketora Ogata) and the Japan Democratic Party (日本民主党, Nihon Minshutō, 1954–1955, led by Ichirō Hatoyama), both conservative parties, as a united front against the then popular Japan Socialist Party (日本社会党, Nipponshakaitō), now the Social Democratic Party (社会民主党, Shakaiminshutō). The party won the following elections, and Japan's first conservative government with a majority was formed by 1955. It would hold majority government until 1993.[20]

The LDP began with reforming Japan's international relations, ranging from entry into the United Nations, to establishing diplomatic ties with the Soviet Union. Its leaders in the 1950s also made the LDP the main government party, and in all the elections of the 1950s, the LDP won the majority vote, with the only other opposition coming from left-wing politics, made up of the Japan Socialist Party and the Japanese Communist Party.

From the 1950s to the early 1970s, the United States Central Intelligence Agency spent millions of dollars to aid the LDP against leftist parties such as the Socialists and the Communists,[21][22] although this was not revealed until the mid-1990s when it was exposed by The New York Times.[23] Details remain classified, while available documents show connections to prime ministers Nobusuke Kishi and Eisaku Satō from the Satō–Kishi–Abe family.[24][25][26]

### 1960s to 1990s

[edit]

For the majority of the 1960s, the LDP (and Japan) were led by Eisaku Satō, beginning with the hosting of the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, and ending in 1972 with Japanese neutrality in the Vietnam War and with the beginning of the Japanese asset price bubble. By the end of the 1970s, the LDP went into its decline, where even though it held the reins of government many scandals plagued the party, while the opposition (now joined with the Kōmeitō (1962–1998)) gained momentum.

In 1976, in the wake of the Lockheed bribery scandals, a handful of younger LDP Diet members broke away and established their own party, the New Liberal Club (Shin Jiyu Kurabu). A decade later, however, it was reabsorbed by the LDP.[27]

By the late 1970s, the Japan Socialist Party, the Japanese Communist Party, and the Komeito along with the international community used major pressure to have Japan switch diplomatic ties from Taiwan (Republic of China) to the People's Republic of China.

In 1983, the LDP was a founding member of the International Democracy Union.[28]

Liberal Democratic Hall Bldg., Headquarters of the LDP in Tokyo

The LDP managed to consistently win elections for over three decades, and the LDP's decades in power allowed it to establish a highly stable process of policy formation. This process would not have been possible if other parties had secured parliamentary majorities. LDP strength was based on an enduring, although not unchallenged, coalition of big business, small business, agriculture, professional groups, and other interests. Elite bureaucrats collaborated closely with the party and interest groups in drafting and implementing policy. In a sense, the party's success was a result not of its internal strength but of its weakness. It lacked a strong, nationwide organization or consistent ideology with which to attract voters. Its leaders were rarely decisive, charismatic, or popular. But it functioned efficiently as a locus for matching interest group money and votes with bureaucratic power and expertise. This arrangement resulted in corruption, but the party could claim credit for helping to create economic growth and a stable, middle-class Japan. [citation needed]

Despite winning the 1986 general election by a landslide, by the end of 1980s, the LDP started to suffer setbacks in elections due to unpopular policies on trade liberalisation and tax, as well as a scandal involving their leader Sōsuke Uno and the Recruit scandal. The party lost its majority in the House of Councillors for the first time in 34 years in the 1989 election.[29]

### Out of power

[edit]

The LDP managed to hold on to power in 1990 Japanese general election despite some losses. In June 1993, 10 members of the party's liberal-conservative faction split to form the New Party Sakigake.[30] The end of the postwar miracle economy, the Japanese asset price bubble and other reasons such as the recruit scandal led to the LDP losing its majority in 1993 Japanese general election held in July of that year.

Seven opposition parties – including several formed by LDP dissidents – formed the Hosokawa government headed by Japan New Party leader and LDP dissident Morihiro Hosokawa, who became the Prime Minister preceded by Kiichi Miyazawa. However, the LDP was still far and away the largest party in the House of Representatives, with well over 200 seats; no other individual party crossed the 80-seat mark. Yohei Kono became the president of the LDP preceded by Kiichi Miyazawa, he was the first non-prime minister LDP leader as the leader of the opposition.

In 1994, the Japan Socialist Party and New Party Sakigake left the ruling coalition, joining the LDP in the opposition. The remaining members of the coalition tried to stay in power as the minority Hata Cabinet under the leadership of Tsutomu Hata, but this failed when the LDP and the Socialists, bitter rivals for 40 years, formed a majority coalition. The Murayama Cabinet was dominated by the LDP, but it allowed Socialist Tomiichi Murayama to occupy the Prime Minister's chair until 1996 when the LDP's Ryutaro Hashimoto took over.

### 1996–2009

[edit]

In the 1996 election, the LDP made some gains but was still 12 seats short of a majority. However, no other party could possibly form a government, and Hashimoto formed a solidly LDP minority government. Through a series of floor-crossings, the LDP regained its majority within a year.

The party was practically unopposed until 1998 when the opposition Democratic Party of Japan was formed. This marked the beginning of the opposing parties' gains in momentum, especially in the 2003 and 2004 Parliamentary Elections, that would not slow for another 12 years.[citation needed]

In the dramatically paced 2003 House of Representatives elections, the LDP won 237 seats, while the DPJ won 177 seats. In the 2004 House of Councillors elections, in the seats up for grabs, the LDP won 49 seats and the DPJ 50, though in all seats (including those uncontested) the LDP still had a total of 114. Because of this electoral loss, former Secretary-General Shinzo Abe turned in his resignation, but Party President Koizumi merely demoted him in rank, and he was replaced by Tsutomu Takebe.[citation needed]

On 10 November 2003, the New Conservative Party (Hoshu Shintō) was absorbed into the LDP, a move which was largely because of the New Conservative Party's poor showing in the 2003 general election. The LDP formed a coalition with the conservative Buddhist New Komeito (party founded by Soka Gakkai) from Obuchi Second shuffle Cabinet (1999–2000).[citation needed]

After a victory in the 2005 Japanese general election, the LDP held an absolute majority in the Japanese House of Representatives and formed a coalition government with the New Komeito Party. Shinzo Abe succeeded then-Prime Minister Junichirō Koizumi as the president of the party on 20 September 2006. The party suffered a major defeat in the election of 2007, however, and lost its majority in the upper house for the first time in its history.[citation needed]

The LDP remained the largest party in both houses of the Diet, until 29 July 2007, when the LDP lost its majority in the upper house.[31]

In a party leadership election held on 23 September 2007, the LDP elected Yasuo Fukuda as its president. Fukuda defeated Tarō Asō for the post, receiving 330 votes against 197 votes for Aso.[32][33] However Fukuda resigned suddenly in September 2008, and Asō became Prime Minister after winning the presidency of the LDP in a five-way election.

In the 2009 general election, the LDP was roundly defeated, winning only 118 seats—easily the worst defeat of a sitting government in modern Japanese history, and also the first real transfer of political power in the post-war era. Accepting responsibility for this severe defeat, Aso announced his resignation as LDP president on election night. Sadakazu Tanigaki was elected leader of the party on 28 September 2009,[34] after a three-way race, becoming only the second LDP leader who was not simultaneously prime minister.[citation needed]

### 2009–present

[edit]

The party's support continued to decline, with prime ministers changing rapidly, and in the 2009 House of Representatives elections the LDP lost its majority, winning only 118 seats, marking the only time they would be out of the majority other than a brief period in 1993.[35][36] Since that time, numerous party members have left to join other parties or form new ones, including Your Party (みんなの党, Minna no Tō),[citation needed] the Sunrise Party of Japan (たちあがれ日本, Tachiagare Nippon)[37] and the New Renaissance Party (新党改革, Shintō Kaikaku).[citation needed] The party had some success in the 2010 House of Councilors election, netting 13 additional seats and denying the DPJ a majority.[38][39] Abe became the president again in September 2012 after a five-way race. The LDP returned to power with its ally New Komeito after winning a clear majority in the lower house general election on 16 December 2012 after just over three years in opposition. Shinzo Abe became Prime Minister for the second time preceded by Yoshihiko Noda who was the leader of the DPJ.[40][41]

In July 2015, the party pushed for expanded military powers to fight in foreign conflict through Shinzo Abe and the support of Komeito.[42]

Yoshihide Suga took over from Shinzo Abe in September 2020 after a three-way race. After Suga declined to run for re-election, successor Fumio Kishida led the party to a victory in the October 2021 Japanese general election after a four-way race, defying expectations.[43] Despite support dropping in 2022 after the assassination of Shinzo Abe over connections between various party members and the Unification Church, the party had a good showing in the 2023 Japanese unified local elections, winning over half of the 2260 prefectural assembly seats being contested and six governorship positions.[44]

From 18 to 19 January 2024, following a scandal involving failure to report and misuse of ¥600 million in campaign funds by members of the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan's conservative Seiwa Seisaku Kenkyūkai and Shisuikai factions in violation of Japanese campaign finance and election law, three factions (Seiwa Seisaku Kenkyūkai, Shisuikai, in addition to PM Kishida's Kōchikai) all announced their intention to dissolve entirely in hopes of restoring public trust.[45][46] Several LDP lawmakers were indicted, including incumbent lawmakers Yasutada Ōno and Yaichi Tanigawa, who both resigned from the party following their indictments.[47]

On 19 October 2024, Atsunobu Usuda, age 49, was arrested in Tokyo after attacking the Liberal Democratic Party headquarters with firebombs and crashing into the prime minister's residence, amid rising public frustration with the ruling party ahead of the 27 October 2024 election.[48]

In the 2024 Japanese general election, the governing LDP and its coalition partner Komeito lost their parliamentary majority in the lower house for the first time since 2009, with the LDP suffering its second-worst result in its history, securing only 191 seats. The Constitutional Democratic Party (CDP), the main opposition party led by former Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, achieved its best result in its history, increasing its seat count from 96 to 148. This was the first general election in Japan since the 1955 election wherein no party secured at least 200 seats. The election outcome is largely attributed to a major slush fund scandal that emerged in November. Millions of yen raised at LDP faction events were illegally funneled into secret accounts, violating political financing laws. This scandal implicated 82 lawmakers from both parliamentary houses, including factions associated with former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and then-Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. The scandal, combined with low approval ratings and economic stagnation, led to Kishida's resignation in August. His successor, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, called for a snap election in September to bolster support. However, the LDP's attempts to distance itself from the scandal backfired when reports surfaced that the party continued to provide funds to chapters headed by implicated members. In response to the election results, the prime minister has committed to implementing fundamental reforms regarding money in politics. The LDP's coalition partner, Komeito, also performed poorly, with its leader Keiichi Ishii losing his seat and subsequently announcing his resignation. This electoral setback is particularly significant for the LDP, which has held power almost continuously since 1955, highlighting the impact of the corruption scandal on public trust in the party.[49]

## Ideology and political stance

[edit]

Part of a series on the

Liberal Democratic Party
(Japan)

History

1950s

* 1955 System
* Soviet–Japanese Joint
Declaration of 1956
* Hatomander
* U.S.-Japan Security Treaty

* * *

1960s

* Anpo protests
* Miike Struggle
* Income Doubling Plan
* Three Non-Nuclear Principles
* Sanrizuka Struggle
* 1968–1969 Japanese university protests

* * *

1970s

* Okinawa Reversion Agreement
* Japan–China Joint Communiqué
* Lockheed bribery scandals
* Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and China
* Fukuda Doctrine

* * *

1980s

* Railway privatization
* Plaza Accord
* Recruit scandal
* Japanese asset price bubble

* * *

1990s

* Kono Statement
* Murayama Statement
* 1993 general election
* 1994 Japanese electoral reform
* Lost Decades

* * *

2000s

* 2001 Central Government Reform
* Honebuto no hōshin
* Postal service privatization
* 2009 general election

* * *

2010s

* Abenomics
* 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
* State Secrecy Law
* Reinterpretation of Article 9
* Moritomo Gakuen scandal

* * *

2020s

* Assassination of Shinzo Abe
* 2023–2024 Japanese slush fund scandal

Main ideology

* Conservatism
* Japanese nationalism

Related ideology

* Anti-communism
* Corporate statism
* Economic conservatism
* Economic interventionism
* Economic liberalism
* Elitism
* Ethnic nationalism
* Liberal conservatism
* Liberalism
* Classical liberalism
* Conservative liberalism
* Historical revisionism
* Monarchism
* Neoconservatism
* Neoliberalism
* National conservatism
* Paternalistic conservatism
* Progressive conservatism
* Reactionary
* Right-wing populism
* Social conservatism
* Traditionalist conservatism
* Ultranationalism

Related organizations

* Association of Shinto Shrines
* Central Intelligence Agency
* Dentsu
* Japan Business Federation
* Japan Conference
* Japan lobby
* Japan Medical Association
* Junior Chamber International Japan
* Local support groups
* Pasona
* Unification Church

Media

* Sankei Shimbun

Related topics

* Factions in the Liberal Democratic Party
* Politics in Japan

* Conservatism portal
* Japan portal

* v
* t
* e

Part of a series on

Conservatism in Japan

Ideologies

* Capitalist
* Fiscal
* State
* Corporate
* Nationalist
* Minzoku
* Populist
* Shōwa Statism
* Ultra
* Neo
* Paternalistic
* Religious
* State Shinto
* Ultra

Principles

* Anti-communism
* Asian values
* Authority
* Bushido
* Discipline
* Duty
* Elitism
* Aristocracy
* Meritocracy
* Familialism
* Filial piety
* Heroism
* Hierarchy
* Imperialism
* Japanese culture
* Japanization
* Kokutai
* Law and order
* Loyalty
* Militarism
* Monarchism
* Nativism
* Gaijin
* Patriotism
* Shinto
* Social order
* Sovereignty
* Tradition
* Yamato-damashii

History

* 1955 System
* Abenomics
* Anti-Comintern Pact
* CIA activities
* Empire
* Emperor system
* Tenkō
* Peace Preservation Law
* Red Purge
* Red Scare
* Satsuma Rebellion
* U.S.-Japan Security Treaty

Intellectuals

* Etō
* Fukuda
* Hasuda
* Hirata
* Hyakuta
* Kanokogi
* Kobayashi
* Masaki
* Mayuzumi
* Minobe
* Mizushima
* Mishima
* Miyake
* Nishibe
* Ōen
* Oh
* Ōkawa
* Oshikawa
* Sakurai
* Shiga
* Sono
* Sugiyama
* Suzuki
* Tadayuki
* Tsunetomo
* Watsuji

Literature

* Hagakure (Recorded 1709–1716)
* Bushido: The Soul of Japan (1899)
* The Book of Tea (1906)
* "Shinmin no Michi" (1941)
* An Investigation of Global Policy (1943)
* Patriotism (1960)
* Sun and Steel (1968)
* ”The Japan That Can Say No” (1989)
* The Dignity of the Nation (2005)

Politicians

* Abe
* Akao
* Asō
* Fukuda
* Hashimoto
* Hatoyama
* Hiranuma
* Inada
* Ishiba
* Ishihara
* Katsura
* Kawamura
* Kiichirō
* Koike
* Koizumi
* Konoe
* Nakagawa
* Nakasone
* Sugita
* Takaichi
* Tojo (Hideki)
* Tojo (Yuko)

Parties

Active

* Conservative Party of Japan
* Democratic Party for the People
* Greater Japan Patriotic Party
* Happiness Realization Party
* Japan First Party
* Japan Innovation Party
* Liberal Democratic Party
* Tokyoites First Party
* Restoration Political Party
* Party of Do it Yourself

Defunct

* Constitutional Government Association
* Imperial Rule Assistance Association
* Japan Renewal Party
* Japan Restoration Party
* New Conservative Party
* Party for Japanese Kokoro
* Party of Hope
* People's New Party
* Sunrise Party
* Your Party

Organisations

Active

* Dentsu
* Ganbare Nippon
* Japanese Society for History Textbook Reform
* Nippon Kaigi
* Seikijuku
* Zaitokukai

Defunct

* Black Dragon Society
* Genyōsha
* Kenkokukai
* Kokuryūkai
* Sakurakai
* Tatenokai

Media

* Bungei Shunjū
* Fujisankei Communications Group
* Japanese Culture Channel Sakura
* Shokun!
* Shufu no Tomo
* Shūkan Shinchō
* Yomiuri Shimbun

Movements

* Action Conservative Movement
* Anti-Americanism
* Green
* Kaikaku hoshu
* Minzoku-ha
* Netto-uyoku
* National essentialism
* Nihon shugi
* Shōwa Restoration
* Shukyū-ha
* Trumpism

Related topics

* Anti-Chinese sentiment
* Anti-Korean sentiment
* Nobility
* Daimyo
* Kazoku
* Kuge
* Samurai
* Hakkō ichiu
* Historical negationism
* History textbooks controversies
* Kokugaku
* Nihonjinron
* Politics in Japan
* Liberalism
* Pro-Americanism (postwar)
* Pro-Republic of China (postwar)
* Uyoku dantai
* Yamato nadeshiko
* Yasukuni Shrine
* Zaibatsu

* Conservatism portal
* Japan portal

* v
* t
* e

The LDP is usually associated with conservatism,[15] Japanese nationalism[16] and being on the political right of the political spectrum.[50] The LDP has been described as a variety of disparate ideologies such as conservative-liberal,[51][52] liberal-conservative,[53][54][55] social-conservative,[56][57] ultranationalist,[58][59][60] and ultraconservative.[61][62] The party though has not espoused a well-defined, unified ideology or political philosophy, due to its long-term government, and has been described as a "catch-all" party.[10]

The LDP members hold a variety of positions that could be broadly defined as being to the right of main opposition parties. Many of its ministers, including former Prime Ministers Fumio Kishida,[63] Yoshihide Suga[64] and Shinzo Abe, are/were affiliated with the parliamentary league of Nippon Kaigi, a far-right[65] ultraconservative[66] lobby group. In Japanese politics, the convention is to classify the Liberal Democratic Party and the Japanese Communist Party as occupying the conservative and progressive ends of the ideological spectrum respectively. However, this classification has faced challenges, especially among younger generations, since the 1990s.[67]

The LDP has also been compared[by whom?] to the corporatist-inspired model of conservative parties, such as the Christian Democratic Union of Germany, in its relative openness towards economic interventionism, mixed market coordination and public expenditure, when compared to neoliberal orthodoxy.[68]

### History

[edit]

In the case of the LDP administration under the 1955 System in Japan, their degree of economic control was stronger than that of Western conservative governments; it was also positioned closer to social democracy.[69] Since the 1970s, the oil crisis has slowed economic growth and increased the resistance of urban citizens to policies that favor farmers.[70] To maintain its dominant position, the LDP sought to expand party supporters by incorporating social security policies and pollution measures advocated by opposition parties.[70] It was also historically closely positioned to corporate statism.[71][72]

### 2021 manifesto

[edit]

During the 2021 general election, the party released the LDP policy manifesto, titled "Create a new era together with you", which included support for policies such as:[73][74][75]

* Wealth redistribution to revive the Japanese economy and empowering the middle class
* Tax breaks for corporations willing to raise wages
* Advance administrative reforms to facilitate digitalization
* High investment in science and technology and increased funds for university research
* Secure robust supply chains for critical materials, such as rare earths
* Continued development of nuclear fusion power generation, and expansion of renewable energy to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050
* Reaching UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals targets
* Offer subsidies for enterprises if they move into new industries
* Electronic COVID-19 vaccine passports
* Expanding support for small and medium businesses hit by the COVID-19 pandemic
* Constitutional amendments, including the proposed Japanese constitutional referendum to formalize the current existence of the Japan Self-Defense Forces in Article 9 of the Constitution and creating an emergency response clause
* Raising Japan's defense budget from the current 1% to "two percent or more" of gross domestic product (GDP) and enhancing Japan's defense capabilities
* Advance understanding of LGBT rights, although the party is not in favor of same-sex marriage,[76] with 50% of its election candidates being "undecided" and those opposed largely outnumbering those in favor[77]
* Acceptance of foreign workers and improving management to cover labor shortages
* Support Taiwan's bid to join the CPTPP agreement and WHO observer status
* Promoting further nuclear disarmament and nuclear nonproliferation

## Factions

[edit]

Main article: Factions in the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)

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Since the genesis of the Liberal Democratic Party in 1955, history and internal composition has been characterized by intense factionalism among its members since its emergence in 1955.[78][79] Despite the change of factions, their history can be traced back to their 1955 roots, a testament to the stability and institutionalized nature of Liberal Democratic Party factions.[80] The party's history and internal composition have been characterized by intense factionalism ever since its emergence in 1955, with its parliamentary members currently split among six factions, each of which vies for influence in the party and the government.[79] The previous Prime Minister and party president, Fumio Kishida, was the leader of the now defunct Kōchikai faction from 2012 until his resignation in 2023.

Current factions in the LDP include:

Name  | Ideology  | Political position  | Leader  | Members

|
|
|
|

* Shikōkai
* 志公会

* Conservatism
* Big tent

| Right-wing | Tarō Asō[81] | 56

* Heisei Kenkyūkai
* 平成研究会

| Conservatism | Right-wing | Toshimitsu Motegi[82] | 53

* Kinmirai Seiji Kenkyūkai
* ?

| ?  | ?  | Hiroshi Moriyama[83] | 8

* Suigetsukai
* ?

| ?  | ?  | Shigeru Ishiba | ?
Independent  | N/A  | 78

## Structure

[edit]

At the apex of the LDP's formal organization is the president (総裁, sōsai), who can serve three[84] three-year terms. (The presidential term was increased from two years to three years in 2002 and from two to three terms in 2017). When the party has a parliamentary majority, the party president is the prime minister. The choice of party president is formally that of a party convention composed of Diet members and local LDP figures, but in most cases, they merely approved the joint decision of the most powerful party leaders. To make the system more democratic, Prime Minister Takeo Fukuda introduced a "primary" system in 1978, which opened the balloting to some 1.5 million LDP members. The process was so costly and acrimonious, however, that it was subsequently abandoned in favor of the old "smoke-filled room" method—so-called in allusion to the notion of closed discussions held in small rooms filled with tobacco smoke.

After the party president, the most important LDP officials are the Secretary-General (kanjicho), the chairmen of the LDP Executive Council (somukaicho), and of the Policy Affairs Research Council or "PARC" (政務調査会, seimu chōsakai).

### Leadership

[edit]

Main article: President of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)

As of 12 November 2024:[85]

Position  | Name  | House  | Faction

|
|
|

President | Shigeru Ishiba | Representatives  | None
Senior Advisor  | Taro Aso | Representatives  | Shikōkai
Vice President | Yoshihide Suga | Representatives  | None
Secretary-General | Hiroshi Moriyama | Representatives  | None
Chairperson, General Council  | Shunichi Suzuki | Representatives  | Shikōkai
Chairperson, Policy Affairs Research Council  | Itsunori Onodera | Representatives  | None
Chairperson, Election Strategy Committee  | Seiji Kihara | Representatives  | None
Chairperson, Party Organization and Movement Headquarters  | Yuko Obuchi | Representatives  | None
Chairperson, Public Relations Headquarters  | Takuya Hirai | Representatives  | None
Chairperson, Diet Affairs Committee  | Tetsushi Sakamoto | Representatives  | None
Executive Deputy Secretary-General  | Tatsuo Fukuda | Representatives  | None
Chairperson, General Assembly of Party Members of the House of Councillors  | Keizo Takemi | Councillors  | None
Secretary-General for the LDP in the House of Councillors  | Masaji Matsuyama | Councillors  | None

## Membership

[edit]

The LDP had over 5.5 million party members in 1991.[86] By December 2017, membership had dropped to approximately one million members.[87] In 2023, the LDP had 1,091,075 members, a decrease of 33,688 from the year before.[88]

## Performance in national elections until 1993

[edit]

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|

See also: Elections in Japan

Election statistics show that, while the LDP had been able to secure a majority in the twelve House of Representatives elections from May 1958 to February 1990, with only three exceptions (December 1976, October 1979, and December 1983), its share of the popular vote had declined from a high of 57.8% in May 1958 to a low of 41.8% in December 1976, when voters expressed their disgust with the party's involvement in the Lockheed scandal.[citation needed] The LDP vote rose again between 1979 and 1990. Although the LDP won an unprecedented 300 seats in the July 1986 balloting, its share of the popular vote remained just under 50%. The figure was 46.2% in February 1990. Following the three occasions when the LDP found itself a handful of seats shy of a majority, it was obliged to form alliances with conservative independents and the breakaway New Liberal Club. In a cabinet appointment after the October 1983 balloting, a non-LDP minister, a member of the New Liberal Club, was appointed for the first time. On 18 July 1993, in lower house elections, the LDP fell so far short of a majority that it was unable to form a government.

In the upper house, the July 1989 election represented the first time that the LDP was forced into a minority position. In previous elections, it had either secured a majority on its own or recruited non-LDP conservatives to make up the difference of a few seats.

The political crisis of 1988–89 was testimony to both the party's strength and its weakness. In the wake of a succession of issues—the pushing of a highly unpopular consumer tax through the Diet in late 1988, the Recruit insider trading scandal, which tainted virtually all top LDP leaders and forced the resignation of Prime Minister Takeshita Noboru in April (a successor did not appear until June), the resignation in July of his successor, Uno Sōsuke, because of a sex scandal, and the poor showing in the upper house election—the media provided the Japanese with a detailed and embarrassing dissection of the political system. By March 1989, popular support for the Takeshita cabinet as expressed in public opinion polls had fallen to 9%. Uno's scandal, covered in magazine interviews of a "kiss and tell" geisha, aroused the fury of female voters.

Uno's successor, the eloquent if obscure Kaifu Toshiki, was successful in repairing the party's battered image. By January 1990, talk of the waning of conservative power and a possible socialist government had given way to the realization that, like the Lockheed affair of the mid-1970s, the Recruit scandal did not signal a significant change in who ruled Japan. The February 1990 general election gave the LDP, including affiliated independents, a comfortable, if not spectacular, majority: 275 of 512 total representatives.

In October 1991, Prime Minister Kaifu Toshiki failed to attain passage of a political reform bill and was rejected by the LDP, despite his popularity with the electorate. He was replaced as prime minister by Miyazawa Kiichi, a long-time LDP stalwart. Defections from the LDP began in the spring of 1992, when Hosokawa Morihiro left the LDP to form the Japan New Party. Later, in the summer of 1993, when the Miyazawa government also failed to pass political reform legislation, thirty-nine LDP members joined the opposition in a no-confidence vote. In the ensuing lower house election, more than fifty LDP members formed the Shinseitō and the Sakigake parties, denying the LDP the majority needed to form a government.

## Election results

[edit]

### Legislative results

[edit]

#### House of Representatives

[edit]

House of Representatives Election  | Leader  | No. of
candidates  | Seats  | Position  | Constituency votes  | PR Block votes  | Status

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

No.  | ±  | Share  | No.  | Share  | No.  | Share
1958 | Nobusuke Kishi | 413  |

289 / 467

|  | 61.8%  | 1st  | 22,976,846  | 57.80%  |  | Government
1960 | Hayato Ikeda | 399  |

296 / 467

|  11  | 64.2%  |  1st  | 22,740,272  | 57.56%  |  | Government
1963 | 359  |

283 / 467

|  17  | 60.5%  |  1st  | 22,423,915  | 54.67%  |  | Government
1967 | Eisaku Satō | 342  |

277 / 486

|  6  | 56.9%  |  1st  | 22,447,838  | 48.80%  |  | Government
1969 | 328  |

288 / 486

|  11  | 59.2%  |  1st  | 22,381,570  | 47.63%  |  | Government
1972 | Kakuei Tanaka | 339  |

271 / 491

|  17  | 55.1%  |  1st  | 24,563,199  | 46.85%  |  | Government
1976 | Takeo Miki | 320  |

249 / 511

|  22  | 48.7%  |  1st  | 23,653,626  | 41.78%  |  | Government
1979 | Masayoshi Ōhira | 322  |

248 / 511

|  1  | 48.5%  |  1st  | 24,084,131  | 44.59%  |  | Government
1980 | 310  |

284 / 511

|  36  | 55.5%  |  1st  | 28,262,442  | 47.88%  |  | Government
1983 | Yasuhiro Nakasone | 339  |

250 / 511

|  34  | 48.9%  |  1st  | 25,982,785  | 45.76%  |  | LDP-NLC coalition
1986 | 322  |

300 / 512

|  50  | 58.5%  |  1st  | 29,875,501  | 49.42%  |  | Government
1990 | Toshiki Kaifu | 338  |

275 / 512

|  25  | 53.7%  |  1st  | 30,315,417  | 46.14%  |  | Government
1993 | Kiichi Miyazawa | 285  |

223 / 511

|  52  | 43.6%  |  1st  | 22,999,646  | 36.62%  |  | Opposition
(until 1994)
LDP-JSP-NPS coalition
(since 1994)
1996 | Ryutaro Hashimoto | 355  |

239 / 500

|  16  | 47.8%  |  1st  | 21,836,096  | 38.63%  | 18,205,955  | 32.76%  | LDP-SDP-NPS coalition
2000 | Yoshirō Mori | 337  |

233 / 480

|  6  | 48.5%  |  1st  | 24,945,806  | 40.97%  | 16,943,425  | 28.31%  | LDP-Komeito-NCP coalition
2003 | Junichiro Koizumi | 336  |

237 / 480

|  4  | 49.3%  |  1st  | 26,089,326  | 43.85%  | 20,660,185  | 34.96%  | LDP-Komeito coalition
2005 | 346  |

296 / 480

|  59  | 61.6%  |  1st  | 32,518,389  | 47.80%  | 25,887,798  | 38.20%  | LDP-Komeito coalition
2009 | Tarō Asō | 326  |

119 / 480

|  177  | 24.7%  |  2nd  | 27,301,982  | 38.68%  | 18,810,217  | 26.73%  | Opposition
2012 | Shinzo Abe | 337  |

294 / 480

|  175  | 61.2%  |  1st  | 25,643,309  | 43.01%  | 16,624,457  | 27.79%  | LDP-Komeito coalition
2014 | 352  |

291 / 475

|  3  | 61.2%  |  1st  | 25,461,427  | 48.10%  | 17,658,916  | 33.11%  | LDP-Komeito coalition
2017 | 332  |

284 / 465

|  7  | 61.0%  |  1st  | 26,719,032  | 48.21%  | 18,555,717  | 33.28%  | LDP-Komeito coalition
2021 | Fumio Kishida | 338  |

259 / 465

|  25  | 55.7%  |  1st  | 27,626,235  | 48.08%  | 19,914,883  | 34.66%  | LDP-Komeito coalition
2024 | Shigeru Ishiba | 342  |

191 / 465

|  68  | 41.1%  |  1st  | 20,867,762  | 38.46%  | 14,582,690  | 26.73%  | LDP-Komeito minority coalition

#### House of Councillors

[edit]

House of Councillors Election  | Leader  | Seats  | Nationwide[d] | Prefecture  | Status

|
|
|
|
|

Total[e] | Contested  | Number  | %  | Number  | %
1956 | Ichirō Hatoyama |

122 / 250

61 / 125

| 11,356,874  | 39.7%  | 14,353,960  | 48.4%  | Governing minority
1959 | Nobusuke Kishi |

132 / 250

71 / 125

| 12,120,598  | 41.2%  | 15,667,022  | 52.0%  | Governing majority
1962 | Hayato Ikeda |

142 / 250

69 / 125

| 16,581,637  | 46.4%  | 17,112,986  | 47.1%  | Governing majority
1965 | Eisaku Satō |

140 / 251

71 / 125

| 17,583,490  | 47.2%  | 16,651,284  | 44.2%  | Governing majority
1968 |

137 / 250

69 / 125

| 20,120,089  | 46.7%  | 19,405,546  | 44.9%  | Governing majority
1971 |

131 / 249

62 / 125

| 17,759,395  | 44.5%  | 17,727,263  | 44.0%  | Governing majority
1974 | Kakuei Tanaka |

126 / 250

62 / 125

| 23,332,773  | 44.3%  | 21,132,372  | 39.5%  | Governing majority
1977 | Takeo Fukuda |

125 / 249

63 / 125

| 18,160,061  | 35.8%  | 20,440,157  | 39.5%  | Governing minority
1980 | Masayoshi Ōhira |

135 / 250

69 / 125

| 23,778,190  | 43.3%  | 24,533,083  | 42.5%  | Governing majority
1983 | Yasuhiro Nakasone |

137 / 252

68 / 126

| 16,441,437  | 35.3%  | 19,975,034  | 43.2%  | Governing majority
1986 |

143 / 252

72 / 126

| 22,132,573  | 38.58%  | 26,111,258  | 45.07%  | Governing majority
1989 | Sōsuke Uno |

109 / 252

36 / 126

| 15,343,455  | 27.32%  | 17,466,406  | 30.70%  | Governing minority
1992 | Kiichi Miyazawa |

106 / 252

68 / 126

| 14,961,199  | 33.29%  | 20,528,293  | 45.23%  | Governing minority
(until 1993)
Minority
(1993–1994)
LDP-JSP-NPS governing majority
(since 1994)
1995 | Yōhei Kōno |

111 / 252

46 / 126

| 10,557,547  | 25.40%  | 11,096,972  | 27.29%  | LDP-JSP-NPS governing majority
1998 | Ryutaro Hashimoto |

102 / 252

44 / 126

| 14,128,719  | 25.17%  | 17,033,851  | 30.45%  | LDP–(Lib.–Komeito) governing majority
(until 2000)
LDP–Komeito–NCP governing majority
(since 2000)
2001 | Junichiro Koizumi |

111 / 247

64 / 121

| 21,114,727  | 38.57%  | 22,299,825  | 41.04%  | LDP–Komeito–NCP governing majority
(until 2003)
LDP–Komeito governing majority
(since 2003)
2004 |

115 / 242

49 / 121

| 16,797,686  | 30.03%  | 19,687,954  | 35.08%  | LDP–Komeito governing majority
2007 | Shinzo Abe |

83 / 242

37 / 121

| 16,544,696  | 28.1%  | 18,606,193  | 31.35%  | LDP–Komeito governing minority
(until 2009)
Minority
(since 2009)
2010 | Sadakazu Tanigaki |

84 / 242

51 / 121

| 14,071,671  | 24.07%  | 19,496,083  | 33.38%  | Minority
(until 2012)
LDP–Komeito governing minority
(since 2012)
2013 | Shinzo Abe |

115 / 242

65 / 121

| 18,460,404  | 34.7%  | 22,681,192  | 42.7%  | LDP–Komeito governing majority
2016 |

121 / 242

56 / 121

| 20,114,833  | 35.9%  | 22,590,793  | 39.9%  | LDP–Komeito governing majority
2019 |

113 / 245

57 / 124

| 17,712,373  | 35.37%  | 20,030,330  | 39.77%  | LDP–Komeito governing majority
2022 | Fumio Kishida |

119 / 248

63 / 125

| 18,256,245  | 34.43%  | 20,603,298  | 38.74%  | LDP–Komeito governing majority

## Logos

[edit]

* Liberal Democratic Party's logo (before 2017)

* Liberal Democratic Party's red variant logo (since 2017)

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Since 2017
2. ^ Official colour before 2017; still used on the English website
3. ^ "われら"
"Ware-ra"
4. ^ From 1947 to 1980, 50 members were elected through a nationwide constituency, known as the "national block" (Plurality-at-large voting). It was replaced in 1983 by a proportional representation block with closed lists. In 2001, the PR block was reduced to 48 members with most open lists.
5. ^ The Upper house is split in two classes, one elected every three years.

## References

[edit]

* This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Country Studies. Federal Research Division.
* Japan Country Studies – Library of Congress

1. ^ Semans, Himari; Ninivaggi, Gabriele (7 November 2024). "LDP lawmakers urge Ishiba to step down after budget passage next year". The Japan Times. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
2. ^ Endo, Masahisa; Pekkanen, Robert (2018). "The LDP: Return to Dominance? Or a Golden Age Built on Sand?". In Pekkanen, Robert (ed.). Critical Readings on the Liberal Democratic Party in Japan. Vol. 4\. Brill. p. 1626\. ISBN 978-90-04-38055-4. Retrieved 31 May 2023. "The Jiyu Minshu, the LDP's party paper, began to focus on rural development from June 2014."
3. ^ "自民党学生部". www.tokyo-jimin.jp. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
4. ^

* Florian Coulmas, ed. (2023). Japanese Propriety, Past and Present: Disciplined Liberalism. Taylor & Francis. p. 88\. ISBN 9781000885835. "... in Japan's post-war political discourse often supporting leftist and socialist positions opposed to the ruling right-wing Liberal Democratic Party, which has always been favoured by Washington."
* "Japan's right-wing Liberal Democratic Party dominates parliamentary election". Business Insider. 10 July 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
* Shorrock, Tim (27 August 2019). "In a Major Shift, South Korea Defies Its Alliance With Japan". The Nation. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
* Akito Okada, ed. (2022). Japan's School Curriculum for The 2020s: Politics, Policy, and Pedagogy. Springer Nature. p. 14\. ISBN 9789811920769. "In the case of Japan, the ideological basis of the right-wing LDP had almost no element of liberal (as in libertarian) thought, such as reliance on anti-nationalist liberalism and individualism, or vigilance against a centrally planned economy and welfare system."
* Arve Hansen; Jo Inge Bekkevold; Kristen Nordhaug, eds. (2020). The Socialist Market Economy in Asia: Development in China, Vietnam and Laos. Springer Nature. p. 318\. ISBN 9789811562488. "Japan's economic miracle was largely formed under the leadership of the conservative right-wing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), ..."
* Lam Peng Er; Purnendra Jain, eds. (2020). Japan's Foreign Policy in the Twenty-First Century: Continuity and Change. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 96\. ISBN 9781498587969. "The rising tide of hawkish nationalism and historical revisionism spearheaded by the right-wing LDP Prime Minister Abe Shinzo in recent decades seems to confirm the doubt."
* Arthur Alexander (June 2018). "Expert Voices on Japan: Security, Economic, Social, and Foreign Policy Recommendations" (PDF). Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation.
* Katsuyuki Hidaka, ed. (2016). Japanese Media at the Beginning of the 21st Century. Routledge. ISBN 9781134988778. "Criticism of the unreservedly right-wing Liberal Democratic Party administration led by Abe Shinzō nevertheless remains strong. Together with advocating for changes to the constitution, the Abe administration has succeeded in passing ..."
* S. Carpenter, ed. (2011). Japan's Nuclear Crisis: The Routes to Responsibility. Springer. p. 113\. ISBN 9780230363717. "Kodama quashed all things he regarded as remotely communist and consistently supported the right-wing LDP."
* J. A. A. Stockwin, ed. (2003). Dictionary of the Modern Politics of Japan. Routledge. p. 177\. ISBN 9781136894886. "... and joined the Young Storm Society (Seirankai) of right-wing liberal democratic party (LDP) parliamentarians, ..."
* Joy Hendry, ed. (2003). Understanding Japanese Society. Routledge. pp. 219–220\. ISBN 9781134502561.219-220&rft.pub=Routledge&rft.date=2003&rft.isbn=9781134502561&rft_id=https://books.google.com/books?id=7ROCAgAAQBAJ&q;=ight-wing+party%2C+the+Liberal+Democratic+Party&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Liberal+Democratic+Party+(Japan)" class="Z3988">
* Ronald P. Dore, ed. (1990). British Factory Japanese Factory: The Origins of National Diversity in Industrial Relations, With a New Afterword. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520024953. "For nearly two decades the right-wing Liberal-Democratic Party has dominated Japanese politics with nearly two-thirds of Diet seats."

5. ^ 日本に定着するか、政党のカラー [Will the colors of political parties settle in Japan?]. The Nikkei (in Japanese). Nikkei, Inc. 21 October 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
6. ^ "自民党". jimin.jp. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
7. ^ 党歌・シンボル. jimin.jp. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
8. ^ a b Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, party membership statistics for chief executives and assembly members in prefectures and municipalities: Prefectural and local assembly members and governors/mayors by political party as of 31 December 2023
9. ^ Ellington, Lucien (14 July 2009). Japan. Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN 978-1-59884-162-6.
10. ^ a b Glenn D. Hook; Julie Gilson; Christopher W. Hughes; Hugo Dobson (2001). Japan's International Relations: Politics, Economics and Security. Routledge. p. 58\. ISBN 978-1-134-32806-2.
11. ^

* Ludger Helms (18 October 2013). Parliamentary Opposition in Old and New Democracies. Routledge. p. 97\. ISBN 978-1-317-97031-6.
* "Japan's new prime minister Fumio Kishida vows to be tough on China but 'courteous' at home". The Times. 29 September 2021. Retrieved 21 February 2023. "Fumio Kishida, a moderate conservative with a stern view of China's growing military assertiveness, will be Japan's new prime minister, after easily winning the election to lead the ruling Liberal Democratic Party."
* "Overseas Business Risk – Japan". GOV.UK. 31 January 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
* Roger Blanpain; Michele Tiraboschi (2008). The Global Labour Market:From Globalization to Flexicurity. Kluwer Law International. p. 268\. ISBN 978-90-411-2722-8.
* Jeffrey Henderson; William Goodwin Aurelio Professor of Greek Language and Literature Jeffrey Henderson (11 February 2011). East Asian Transformation:On the Political Economy of Dynamism, Governance and Crisis. Taylor & Francis. p. 54\. ISBN 978-1-136-84113-2.
* Peter Davies; Derek Lynch (16 August 2005). The Routledge Companion to Fascism and the Far Right. Routledge. p. 236\. ISBN 978-1-134-60952-9.
* "Japan is having an election next month. Here's why it matters". Vox. 28 September 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2020. "Abe's center-right Liberal Democratic Party (LDP),"

12. ^ Some sources also assessed that the LDP was founded with funds from ultranationalist, and some sources refer to the LDP as far-right ultranationalist:

* Matthew Pointon, ed. (2017). Across Asia With A Lowlander. Lulu.com. p. 12\. ISBN 9780244043544. "Ever since the culmination of the Second World War, the far right Liberal Democratic Party has firmly held the reins of power, with only a couple of minor interruptions."
* "Beautiful Harmony: Political Project Behind Japan's New Era Name – Analysis". eurasia review. 16 July 2019. "The shifting dynamics around the new era name (gengō 元号) offers an opportunity to understand how the domestic politics of the LDP's project of ultranationalism is shaping a new Japan and a new form of nationalism."
* Margaret DiCanio PhD, ed. (2004). Encyclopedia of Violence. iUniverse. ISBN 9780595316526. "In 1955, with funds from the ultranationalists, the conservatives merged the Liberal Party with the Democratic Party to form the Liberal Democratic Party (LPD), which effectively held the Japanese Communist Party in check."

13. ^

* Mark R. Mullins, ed. (2021). The Routledge Handbook of Japanese Politics. University of Hawaii Press. p. 94\. ISBN 9780824890162. "The first is provided by Yamatani Eriko, one of the darlings of Shinseiren and a person who represents the far right of the LDP."
* "The Dangerous Impact of the Far-Right in Japan". Washington Square News. 15 April 2019. "Another sign of the rise of the uyoku dantai's ideas is the growing power of the Nippon Kaigi. The organization is the largest far-right group in Japan and has heavy lobbying clout with the conservative LDP; 18 of the 20 members of Shinzo Abe's cabinet were once members of the group."
* "Why Steve Bannon Admires Japan". The Diplomat. 22 June 2018. "In Japan, populist and extreme right-wing nationalism has found a home within the political establishment."
* Wesley Yee (January 2018). "Making Japan Great Again: Japan's Liberal Democratic Party as a Far Right Movement". The University of San Francisco.
* "Japan's ruling party under fire over links to far-right extremists". The Guardian. 13 October 2014.
* "For Abe, it will always be about the Constitution". The Japan Times. 4 July 2016. Retrieved 8 July 2020. "Of those three victories, the first election in December 2012 was a rout of the leftist Democratic Party of Japan and it thrust the more powerful Lower House of Parliament firmly into the hands of the long-incumbent Liberal Democratic Party under Abe. The second election in December 2014 further normalized Japan's lurch to the far right, giving the ruling coalition a supermajority of 2/3 of the seats in the Lower House."
* "Shinzo Abe? That's Not His Name, Says Japan's Foreign Minister". The New York Times. 22 May 2019. Retrieved 19 February 2020. "Mr. Abe is strongly supported by the far right wing of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which hews to tradition and tends toward insularity."
* Leonel Lim, Michael W. Apple, ed. (2016). The Strong State and Curriculum Reform: Assessing the politics and possibilities of educational change in Asia. Routledge. p. 167\. ISBN 9781317579236. "... Far right LDP legislators led by Prime Minister (PM) Shinzo ̄ Abe demanded the withdrawal of the 1993 Ko ̄no Statement and attacked the ..."
* Alisa Gaunder, ed. (2011). Routledge Handbook of Japanese Politics. Taylor & Francis. p. 225\. ISBN 9781136818387.
* Michael W. Apple, ed. (2009). Global Crises, Social Justice, and Education. Routledge. p. 62\. ISBN 9781135172787. "Far-right politicians within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which achieved the half-century conservative political reign from 1955 to 1993, were nostalgic for the prewar elitist and imperial education system."
* Sarah Hyde, ed. (2009). The Transformation of the Japanese Left: From Old Socialists to New Democrats. Routledge. p. XY. ISBN 9781135219758. "Ever since the 1950s, and except for a brief period in the early 1990s, the central ruling force has been the Liberal Democratic Party, a broad church of interests and opinions ranging from the political centre to the extreme right."
* Adam Gamble, Takesato Watanabe, ed. (2004). A Public Betrayed: An Inside Look at Japanese Media Atrocities and Their Warnings to the West. Regnery Publishing. p. 255\. ISBN 9780895260468. "Since then, and right up until today , Japanese apologists, strongly supported by far-right publishers such as Bungeishunju Ltd. and Shinchosha Ltd., and including many top-ruling Liberal Democratic Party ( LDP ) officials ..."
* Adam Gamble, Takesato Watanabe, ed. (2004). A Public Betrayed: An Inside Look at Japanese Media Atrocities and Their Warnings to the West. Regnery Publishing. p. 255\. ISBN 9780895260468. "Since then , and right up until today , Japanese apologists , strongly supported by far – right publishers such as Bungeishunju Ltd. and Shinchosha Ltd. , and including many top – ruling Liberal Democratic Party ( LDP ) officials ..."
* Trevor Harrison, ed. (2007). 21st century Japan: a new sun rising l Politics in Postwar Japan. Black Rose Books. p. 82\. "... of the war and viewed the 1947 Constitution as illegitimate as it was written not by the Japanese people but forced upon the country by the U.S. Occupation Authority. Abe shares these beliefs, in common with many within the LDP's far right."
* David E. Kaplan; Alec Dubro, eds. (2003). Yakuza: Japan's Criminal Underworld. University of California Press. p. 60.
* J. A. A. Stockwin, ed. (2003). Dictionary of the Modern Politics of Japan. Routledge. p. 88.
* Searchlight, Issues 307–318. Searchlight. 2001. p. 31.
* New Statesman Society. Statesman & Nation Publishing Company. 1995. p. 11.
* David M. O'Brien, Yasuo goshi, ed. (1996). To Dream of Dreams: Religious Freedom and Constitutional Politics in Postwar Japan. University of Hawaii Press. p. 63\. ISBN 9780824811662.
* Asia Pacific Business Travel Guide. Priory Publications (Cornell University). 1994. p. 173.
* Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Atomic Scientists of Chicago. 1983. p. 14\. "... 12 Seirankai: an extreme-right faction formed within the LDP in July 1973; after Kim Dae Jung was abducted from ..."

14. ^

* "Japan is having an election next month. Here's why it matters". The Japan Times. 22 November 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2020. "When Abe appointed five female ministers in September, two of which were forced to step down over scandals, a number of political commentators viewed the move with some cynicism, suggesting that the prime minister didn't pay much attention to the qualifications of the candidates. Most of the women he chose were ultra-conservatives such as Eriko Yamatani, minister in charge of the North Korea abductee issue."
* "Japan, led by less apologetic generation, stays tough in South Korea feud". Reuters. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 8 July 2020. "Electoral system changes and three years in opposition helped ultra-conservative lawmakers and lobby groups strengthen their clout in the LDP."

15. ^ a b The Liberal Democratic Party is widely described as conservative:
* Roger Blanpain; Michele Tiraboschi; Pablo Arellano Ortiz (2008). The Global Labour Market: From Globalization to Flexicurity. Kluwer Law International. p. 268\. ISBN 978-90-411-2722-8.
* Jeff Kingston (2011). Japan in Transformation, 1945-2010. Routledge. p. 19\. ISBN 978-1-317-86192-8.
* Bradley Richardson (2001). "Japan's "1955 System" and Beyond". In Larry Diamond; Richard Gunther (eds.). Political Parties and Democracy. JHU Press. p. 145\. ISBN 978-0-8018-6863-4.
* Paul W. Zagorski (2009). Comparative Politics: Continuity and Breakdown in the Contemporary World. Routledge. p. 111\. ISBN 978-1-135-96979-0.
* Ray Christensen (2000). Ending the LDP Hegemony: Party Cooperation in Japan. University of Hawaii Press. p. 232. ISBN 978-0-8248-2295-8.
16. ^ a b Sources describing the LDP as nationalist:
* "The Resurgence of Japanese Nationalism". 22 July 2015. Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
* "As Hiroshima's legacy fades, Japan's postwar pacifism is fraying". The Conversation UK. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 21 February 2020. "Even though much of the Japanese public does not agree with the LDP's nationalist platform, the party won big electoral victories by promising to replace the DPJ's weakness with strong leadership – particularly on the economy, but also in foreign affairs."
* "Why Steve Bannon Admires Japan". The Diplomat. 22 June 2018. "In Japan, populist and extreme right-wing nationalism has found a home within the political establishment."
* "Shinzo Abe and the rise of Japanese nationalism". New Statesman. 15 May 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2020. "As a new emperor takes the throne, prime minister Abe is consolidating his ultranationalist "beautiful Japan" project. But can he overcome a falling population and stagnating economy?"
* "Japan's ruling conservatives have been returned to power, but amid voter frustration, challenges lurk for Kishida". The Conversation. 1 November 2021. Retrieved 26 November 2021. "Japan's ruling conservative nationalist Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) will remain comfortably in power under its new prime minister Fumio Kishida, after the weekend's national election."
* A Weiss (31 May 2018). Towards a Beautiful Japan: Right-Wing Religious Nationalism in Japan's LDP.
17. ^

* Shorrock, Tim (27 August 2019). "In a Major Shift, South Korea Defies Its Alliance With Japan". The Nation. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
* Arthur Alexander (June 2018). "Expert Voices on Japan: Security, Economic, Social, and Foreign Policy Recommendations" (PDF). Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation.
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## Bibliography

[edit]

* Helms, Ludger (2013). Parliamentary Opposition in Old and New Democracies. Routledge Press. ISBN 978-1-31797-031-6.
* Henderson, Jeffrey (2011). East Asian Transformation: On the Political Economy of Dynamism, Governance and Crisis. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-13684-113-2.
* Köllner, Patrick. "The Liberal Democratic Party at 50: Sources of Dominance and Changes in the Koizumi Era", Social Science Japan Journal (Oct 2006) 9#2 pp 243–257.
* Krauss, Ellis S., and Robert J. Pekkanen. "The Rise and Fall of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party", Journal of Asian Studies (2010) 69#1 pp 5–15, focuses on the 2009 election.
* Krauss, Ellis S., and Robert J. Pekkanen, eds. The Rise and Fall of Japan's LDP: Political Party Organizations as Historical Institutions (Cornell University Press; 2010) 344 pages; essays by scholars
* Scheiner, Ethan. Democracy without Competition in Japan: Opposition Failure in a One-Party Dominant State (Cambridge University Press, 2006)

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