Japan’s new PM calls snap election to ‘create a new Japan’

Ishiba’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior coalition partner are almost certain to be re-elected on October 27, with the premier banking on his honeymoon popularity and a fragmented opposition to secure a majority.

At a press conference, he said that strengthening spending on poorer regions hit by Japan’s demographic crisis was not just a rehashing of old ideas.

“This is an attempt to create a new Japan that will drastically change the nature of Japanese society. In order to boldly carry out this major change, we need the confidence of the people,” he said.

The LDP has governed Japan almost uninterrupted for decades, albeit with frequent leader changes.

But Ishiba, named prime minister just last week, wants to shore up his mandate to push through policies that include more spending on defence.