Lower House Seat Cut Said Unlikely in Time for Next Election

Tokyo, Dec. 22 (Jiji Press)–A possible cut in the number of House of Representatives seats is unlikely to be implemented in time for the next election for the all-important lower chamber of the Diet, the country’s parliament, a Japanese ruling party official has indicated. Even if a bill regarding a reduction in Lower House seats is passed during next year’s ordinary Diet session, it would be difficult to hold the next election for the chamber under the new system, Keiji Furuya, head of the Liberal Democratic Party’s Election Strategy Committee, said in an address in the city of Nakatsugawa, Gifu Prefecture, central Japan, on Sunday. As the reason, Furuya said that related discussions between the ruling and opposition camps and a revision of constituencies would likely take until around autumn 2028, when the four-year terms of current Lower House members are set to expire. “If the Lower House is dissolved by then, the subsequent general election would be held under the current system,” he said. “Honestly speaking, it is difficult (for the new system to be introduced in time for the next Lower House election),” Furuya said. On the timing of the Lower House breakup, Furuya said Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who took office in October, “has many policies that she is anxious to realize, and these will be handled at (next year’s) ordinary Diet session.” “The prime minister is expected to dissolve the Lower House at the best possible time after achieving results one by one and gaining high marks from the public,” Furuya said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]