Japan PM Takaichi dissolves parliament, paving way for snap election

BREAKINGBREAKING,

Before a snap election is set for February 8, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi hasdissolved parliament.

As lawmakers chanted the traditional “banzai” rallying cry on Friday, the speaker of Japan’s parliament read out a letter formally dissolving the lower house.

A 12-day election campaign that officially begins on Tuesday thanks to the 465-member lower house’s dissolution.

On Monday, Takaichi, the nation’s first female premier, made her intentions known.

Although Takaichi has only been in office for three months and received strong approval ratings of about 70%, she was elected as Japan’s first female leader in October.

After experiencing significant declines in public support in recent years, she hopes to capitalize on her personal popularity to help the ruling party regain momentum.

In the powerful lower chamber, Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Japan Innovation Party (JIP) have a sizable majority.

In response to rising tensions with China, Japan’s public broadcaster NHK stated that important election-related issues will be addressing rising consumer prices as well as security concerns.