Age of a Two-Party System Dawning in Japan.

(From Journal of Japanese Trade & Industry (JJTI))

Japan has taken a major step toward creating a two-party political system as a result of the November 9 general election, in which the No.1 opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) made substantial gains. The DPJ increased its strength in the House of Representatives by 40 seats to 177, the largest number of seats ever won by an opposition party. The party, which had gained momentum after its recent merger with the Liberal Party, won more votes than any other party in proportional representation.

Prime Minister Koizumi Jun-ichiro's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) won 237 seats, falling short of a majority of 241 in the 480-seat chamber. But, combined with the 34 seats captured by New Komeito and four garnered by the New Conservative Party (NCP), the ruling coalition won 278 seats, well above the 269 seats required to steer parliament smoothly.

The LDP's failure to win a majority on its own could adversely affect Koizumi's structural reform agenda.

The DPJ's major gains in the general election, the first Japanese election to feature the manifestos of the political parties, is interpreted as reflecting voters' momentum to nurture an opposition party that can become an alternative to the LDP-led ruling coalition. Some analysts noted the "sense of balance" of voters who sent a message to Koizumi that he has to do better if he intends to remain in power in the years to come.

Though New Komeito made some gains, other smaller parties suffered serious setbacks. The Japanese Communist Party (JCP) saw their number of seats fall to nine from 20 and the Social Democratic Party (SDP) lost two-thirds of its seats, to only six from ...