Japan general election, 2003
Encyclopedia
A general election took place in Japan
on November 9, 2003. Incumbent
Prime Minister
Junichiro Koizumi
of the Liberal Democrat Party
won the election but with a reduced majority. The main opposition Democratic Party
made considerable gains, winning 177 of the 480 seats in the House of Representatives
, its largest share ever. Other traditional parties like the Communist Party
and the Social Democrat Party
lost a significant numbers of seats, making a two-party system
a possibility in future Japanese politics
.
dissolved the House of Representatives
of the Diet
after he was re-elected as the Liberal Democrat Party
chief on September 20. The dissolution was based on Article 7 of the Constitution of Japan
, which can be interpreted as saying that the Prime Minister has the power to dissolve the lower house after so advising the Emperor
.
The election was the first since Koizumi was named Prime Minister in April 2001. The major participants were the Liberal Democrat Party
(LDP) and the Democrat Party
(DPJ). The LDP retains strong support in rural areas and among older voters due to heavy subsidies in agriculture
, while the DPJ has had greater support among youth and in urban areas. However, this has tended to favor the LDP, because sparsely populated rural districts have disproportionate weight in Japan's electoral system.
Some of the issues facing candidates were: the ongoing economic recession; reform of the public pension system; the extent of Japan's support of the U.S. in Iraq; Japan's relationship with North Korea
; and the privatization
of the postal service and Tokyo-area highways.
The last general election
of the Lower House took place in June 2000 when Yoshiro Mori
was Prime Minister.
National newspapers concluded that the election benefitted the Democrat Party
(DPJ) more so than the Liberal Democrat Party
(LDP). The DPJ actually garnered the plurality of votes and gained 40 more seats, making it the largest opposition party with a total lower-house membership of 177. Among those in the ruling coalition, only the New Clean Government Party (New Komeito) made gains, bringing its total lower-house membership to 34 from 31 members before the election. Since Prime Minister Koizumi was unable to gain more seats for the LDP based upon his high approval ratings — around 60% — some experts believe the election has left Koizumi a weakened Prime Minister
while others point out that several of the Non-partisans were really of LDP, most notably 'Kato Koichi' and LDP had in fact maintained the number of seats.
The LDP performed well in rural areas while the DPJ performed well in urban areas. The turnout was 59.86%, the second lowest since 1945. The average age of new members of the house was 51.03, 3.2 years younger than in the previous election. Among new members, 302 were born after 1945. After the election, the total number of women in the lower-house decreased to 34 from 35 before the election.
Poll data collected early in the election season and in exit polls highlight the role of swing vote
rs, who accounted for 18% of the total vote. According to Asahi Shimbun
, more than half of swing voters voted for the DPJ. These exit polls produced highly contradictory preliminary reports. There was a case where DPJ was predicted to capture up to 230 seats, more than 50 above the actual result.
The Liberal Democrat Party
failed to achieve an absolute majority by itself, requiring it to maintain its coalition with the New Clean Government Party and the New Conservative Party
. Senior politicians in the LDP attribute the results to disenfranchisement among traditional supporters of the LDP, resulting in an increased dependency on the coalition. Some politicians in the LDP are concerned about the influence of the New Clean Government Party on LDP policy because of the dependency.
Some experts believe the Democrat Party
has emerged an effective opposition party to the entrenched Liberal Democrat Party
. During the campaign, the DPJ produced an itemized policy manifesto — a first in post-war Japanese elections — and publicized a "shadow cabinet" (with Naoto Kan
as Prime Minister), which is usually created by political parties during election season in the United Kingdom
, for example. The DPJ also criticized the reforms proposed by Koizumi and the LDP’s sluggishness in their implementation, as well as the LDP's position on Iraq while steering clear on other foreign issues.
Smaller parties performed poorly. The Social Democrat Party
lost 3 seats, bringing their lower-house membership to 6, while the Japanese Communist Party
lost 11 seats, bringing their total membership to 9 from 20 before the election. Both parties thus lack the ability to propose a law alone since that requires minimum of 10 members. The New Conservative Party
lost 5 seats, lowering their total to 4 seats from 9 seats, and merged with the LDP shortly after the election. The Japanese Communist Party
blamed the negative results on the media, which they claimed focused on the LDP and DPJ.
Although the LDP failed to secure a simple majority, on November 19, the Diet
appointed Junichiro Koizumi the Prime Minister in its short special session
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20031120a1.htm and, within a month, the LDP regained a majority by absorbing the Conservative Party.
Numbers in parentheses indicate seats held before the election.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on November 9, 2003. Incumbent
Incumbent
The incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Japan
The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...
Junichiro Koizumi
Junichiro Koizumi
is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 2001 to 2006. He retired from politics when his term in parliament ended.Widely seen as a maverick leader of the Liberal Democratic Party , he became known as an economic reformer, focusing on Japan's government debt and the...
of the Liberal Democrat Party
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
The , frequently abbreviated to LDP or , is a centre-right political party in Japan. It is one of the most consistently successful political parties in the democratic world. The LDP ruled almost continuously for nearly 54 years from its founding in 1955 until its defeat in the 2009 election...
won the election but with a reduced majority. The main opposition Democratic Party
Democratic Party of Japan
The is a political party in Japan founded in 1998 by the merger of several opposition parties. Its socially liberal platform is generally considered center-left in the Japanese political spectrum...
made considerable gains, winning 177 of the 480 seats in the House of Representatives
House of Representatives of Japan
The is the lower house of the Diet of Japan. The House of Councillors of Japan is the upper house.The House of Representatives has 480 members, elected for a four-year term. Of these, 180 members are elected from 11 multi-member constituencies by a party-list system of proportional representation,...
, its largest share ever. Other traditional parties like the Communist Party
Japanese Communist Party
The Japanese Communist Party is a left-wing political party in Japan.The JCP advocates the establishment of a society based on socialism, democracy and peace, and opposition to militarism...
and the Social Democrat Party
Social Democratic Party (Japan)
The Social Democratic Party The Social Democratic Party The Social Democratic Party (社会民主党 Shakai Minshu-tō, often abbreviated to 社民党 Shamin-tō; also known as the Social Democratic Party of Japan (abbreviated to SDPJ or SDP in English) is a political party that advocates for the establishment of a...
lost a significant numbers of seats, making a two-party system
Two-party system
A two-party system is a system where two major political parties dominate voting in nearly all elections at every level of government and, as a result, all or nearly all elected offices are members of one of the two major parties...
a possibility in future Japanese politics
Politics of Japan
The politics of Japan is conducted in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic monarchy, where Prime Minister of Japan is the head of government. Japanese politics uses a multi-party system. Executive power exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in the Diet, with...
.
Background
On October 11, 2003, Prime Minister Junichiro KoizumiJunichiro Koizumi
is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 2001 to 2006. He retired from politics when his term in parliament ended.Widely seen as a maverick leader of the Liberal Democratic Party , he became known as an economic reformer, focusing on Japan's government debt and the...
dissolved the House of Representatives
House of Representatives of Japan
The is the lower house of the Diet of Japan. The House of Councillors of Japan is the upper house.The House of Representatives has 480 members, elected for a four-year term. Of these, 180 members are elected from 11 multi-member constituencies by a party-list system of proportional representation,...
of the Diet
Diet of Japan
The is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under a parallel voting system. In addition to passing laws, the Diet is formally...
after he was re-elected as the Liberal Democrat Party
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
The , frequently abbreviated to LDP or , is a centre-right political party in Japan. It is one of the most consistently successful political parties in the democratic world. The LDP ruled almost continuously for nearly 54 years from its founding in 1955 until its defeat in the 2009 election...
chief on September 20. The dissolution was based on Article 7 of the Constitution of Japan
Constitution of Japan
The is the fundamental law of Japan. It was enacted on 3 May, 1947 as a new constitution for postwar Japan.-Outline:The constitution provides for a parliamentary system of government and guarantees certain fundamental rights...
, which can be interpreted as saying that the Prime Minister has the power to dissolve the lower house after so advising the Emperor
Emperor of Japan
The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...
.
The election was the first since Koizumi was named Prime Minister in April 2001. The major participants were the Liberal Democrat Party
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
The , frequently abbreviated to LDP or , is a centre-right political party in Japan. It is one of the most consistently successful political parties in the democratic world. The LDP ruled almost continuously for nearly 54 years from its founding in 1955 until its defeat in the 2009 election...
(LDP) and the Democrat Party
Democratic Party of Japan
The is a political party in Japan founded in 1998 by the merger of several opposition parties. Its socially liberal platform is generally considered center-left in the Japanese political spectrum...
(DPJ). The LDP retains strong support in rural areas and among older voters due to heavy subsidies in agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, while the DPJ has had greater support among youth and in urban areas. However, this has tended to favor the LDP, because sparsely populated rural districts have disproportionate weight in Japan's electoral system.
Some of the issues facing candidates were: the ongoing economic recession; reform of the public pension system; the extent of Japan's support of the U.S. in Iraq; Japan's relationship with North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
; and the privatization
Privatization
Privatization is the incidence or process of transferring ownership of a business, enterprise, agency or public service from the public sector to the private sector or to private non-profit organizations...
of the postal service and Tokyo-area highways.
The last general election
Japan general election, 2000
Elections to the Shugi-In of the Japanese Diet were held on 25 June 2000.These statistics are from the newspaper Asahi Shimbun of 26 and 27 June 2000.Parties:* Komeito...
of the Lower House took place in June 2000 when Yoshiro Mori
Yoshiro Mori
is a Japanese politician who served as the 85th and 86th Prime Minister of Japan starting at 5 April 2000 ending 26 April 2001. Described as having "the heart of a flea and the brain of a shark," he was an unpopular prime minister mainly remembered today for his many gaffes and situationally...
was Prime Minister.
Results
For a breakdown of the results by block district with maps, see Results of Japan general election, 2003Results of Japan general election, 2003
This article presents detail of the results in the Japan general election, 2003, breaking down results by block district. The 11 block districts elected 180 members by proportional representation , and 300 members were elected from single-member districts distributed among the 47 prefectures.Five...
National newspapers concluded that the election benefitted the Democrat Party
Democratic Party of Japan
The is a political party in Japan founded in 1998 by the merger of several opposition parties. Its socially liberal platform is generally considered center-left in the Japanese political spectrum...
(DPJ) more so than the Liberal Democrat Party
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
The , frequently abbreviated to LDP or , is a centre-right political party in Japan. It is one of the most consistently successful political parties in the democratic world. The LDP ruled almost continuously for nearly 54 years from its founding in 1955 until its defeat in the 2009 election...
(LDP). The DPJ actually garnered the plurality of votes and gained 40 more seats, making it the largest opposition party with a total lower-house membership of 177. Among those in the ruling coalition, only the New Clean Government Party (New Komeito) made gains, bringing its total lower-house membership to 34 from 31 members before the election. Since Prime Minister Koizumi was unable to gain more seats for the LDP based upon his high approval ratings — around 60% — some experts believe the election has left Koizumi a weakened Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
while others point out that several of the Non-partisans were really of LDP, most notably 'Kato Koichi' and LDP had in fact maintained the number of seats.
The LDP performed well in rural areas while the DPJ performed well in urban areas. The turnout was 59.86%, the second lowest since 1945. The average age of new members of the house was 51.03, 3.2 years younger than in the previous election. Among new members, 302 were born after 1945. After the election, the total number of women in the lower-house decreased to 34 from 35 before the election.
Poll data collected early in the election season and in exit polls highlight the role of swing vote
Swing vote
Swing vote is a term used to describe a vote that may go to any of a number of candidates in an election, or, in a two-party system, may go to either of the two dominant political parties...
rs, who accounted for 18% of the total vote. According to Asahi Shimbun
Asahi Shimbun
The is the second most circulated out of the five national newspapers in Japan. Its circulation, which was 7.96 million for its morning edition and 3.1 million for its evening edition as of June 2010, was second behind that of Yomiuri Shimbun...
, more than half of swing voters voted for the DPJ. These exit polls produced highly contradictory preliminary reports. There was a case where DPJ was predicted to capture up to 230 seats, more than 50 above the actual result.
The Liberal Democrat Party
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
The , frequently abbreviated to LDP or , is a centre-right political party in Japan. It is one of the most consistently successful political parties in the democratic world. The LDP ruled almost continuously for nearly 54 years from its founding in 1955 until its defeat in the 2009 election...
failed to achieve an absolute majority by itself, requiring it to maintain its coalition with the New Clean Government Party and the New Conservative Party
New Conservative Party
The New Conservative Party is a now-defunct political party in Japan originally led by Hiroshi Kumagai. Kumagai and 3 other disgruntled Democratic Party of Japan members defected in December 2002 and merged with the Conservative Party of Japan , forming the New Conservative Party...
. Senior politicians in the LDP attribute the results to disenfranchisement among traditional supporters of the LDP, resulting in an increased dependency on the coalition. Some politicians in the LDP are concerned about the influence of the New Clean Government Party on LDP policy because of the dependency.
Some experts believe the Democrat Party
Democratic Party of Japan
The is a political party in Japan founded in 1998 by the merger of several opposition parties. Its socially liberal platform is generally considered center-left in the Japanese political spectrum...
has emerged an effective opposition party to the entrenched Liberal Democrat Party
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
The , frequently abbreviated to LDP or , is a centre-right political party in Japan. It is one of the most consistently successful political parties in the democratic world. The LDP ruled almost continuously for nearly 54 years from its founding in 1955 until its defeat in the 2009 election...
. During the campaign, the DPJ produced an itemized policy manifesto — a first in post-war Japanese elections — and publicized a "shadow cabinet" (with Naoto Kan
Naoto Kan
is a Japanese politician, and former Prime Minister of Japan. In June 2010, then-Finance Minister Kan was elected as the leader of the Democratic Party of Japan and designated Prime Minister by the Diet to succeed Yukio Hatoyama. On 26 August 2011, Kan announced his resignation...
as Prime Minister), which is usually created by political parties during election season in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, for example. The DPJ also criticized the reforms proposed by Koizumi and the LDP’s sluggishness in their implementation, as well as the LDP's position on Iraq while steering clear on other foreign issues.
Smaller parties performed poorly. The Social Democrat Party
Social Democratic Party (Japan)
The Social Democratic Party The Social Democratic Party The Social Democratic Party (社会民主党 Shakai Minshu-tō, often abbreviated to 社民党 Shamin-tō; also known as the Social Democratic Party of Japan (abbreviated to SDPJ or SDP in English) is a political party that advocates for the establishment of a...
lost 3 seats, bringing their lower-house membership to 6, while the Japanese Communist Party
Japanese Communist Party
The Japanese Communist Party is a left-wing political party in Japan.The JCP advocates the establishment of a society based on socialism, democracy and peace, and opposition to militarism...
lost 11 seats, bringing their total membership to 9 from 20 before the election. Both parties thus lack the ability to propose a law alone since that requires minimum of 10 members. The New Conservative Party
New Conservative Party
The New Conservative Party is a now-defunct political party in Japan originally led by Hiroshi Kumagai. Kumagai and 3 other disgruntled Democratic Party of Japan members defected in December 2002 and merged with the Conservative Party of Japan , forming the New Conservative Party...
lost 5 seats, lowering their total to 4 seats from 9 seats, and merged with the LDP shortly after the election. The Japanese Communist Party
Japanese Communist Party
The Japanese Communist Party is a left-wing political party in Japan.The JCP advocates the establishment of a society based on socialism, democracy and peace, and opposition to militarism...
blamed the negative results on the media, which they claimed focused on the LDP and DPJ.
Although the LDP failed to secure a simple majority, on November 19, the Diet
Diet of Japan
The is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under a parallel voting system. In addition to passing laws, the Diet is formally...
appointed Junichiro Koizumi the Prime Minister in its short special session
Special session
In a legislature, a special session is a period when the body convenes outside of the normal legislative session. This most frequently occurs in order to complete unfinished tasks for the year , such as outlining the government's budget for the next fiscal year, biennium, or other period...
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20031120a1.htm and, within a month, the LDP regained a majority by absorbing the Conservative Party.
| Party | Single-member constituencies |
Proportional representation |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrat Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) The , frequently abbreviated to LDP or , is a centre-right political party in Japan. It is one of the most consistently successful political parties in the democratic world. The LDP ruled almost continuously for nearly 54 years from its founding in 1955 until its defeat in the 2009 election... |
168 | 69 | 237 (247) |
| Democrat Democratic Party of Japan The is a political party in Japan founded in 1998 by the merger of several opposition parties. Its socially liberal platform is generally considered center-left in the Japanese political spectrum... |
105 | 72 | 177 (137) |
| New Clean Government | 9 | 25 | 34 (31) |
| Japanese Communist Japanese Communist Party The Japanese Communist Party is a left-wing political party in Japan.The JCP advocates the establishment of a society based on socialism, democracy and peace, and opposition to militarism... |
0 | 9 | 9 (20) |
| Social Democrat Social Democratic Party (Japan) The Social Democratic Party The Social Democratic Party The Social Democratic Party (社会民主党 Shakai Minshu-tō, often abbreviated to 社民党 Shamin-tō; also known as the Social Democratic Party of Japan (abbreviated to SDPJ or SDP in English) is a political party that advocates for the establishment of a... |
1 | 5 | 6 (18) |
| New Conservative New Conservative Party The New Conservative Party is a now-defunct political party in Japan originally led by Hiroshi Kumagai. Kumagai and 3 other disgruntled Democratic Party of Japan members defected in December 2002 and merged with the Conservative Party of Japan , forming the New Conservative Party... |
4 | 0 | 4 (9) |
| Independent | 1 | 0 | 1 (5) |
| Liberal League | 1 | 0 | 1 (1) |
| Environmental Green | 0 | 0 | 0 (2) |
| Non-partisan | 11 | - | 11 (6) |
Numbers in parentheses indicate seats held before the election.