ArrowArtboardCreated with Sketch.Title ChevronTitle ChevronIcon FacebookIcon LinkedinIcon Mail ContactPath LayerIcon MailPositive ArrowIcon Print
Inside Japanese politics

Japan's political parties lose sway under stronger prime ministers

LDP and Komeito see influence ebb as decision-making grows more centralized

Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi, right, and Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. Komeito, a member of the ruling coalition, is hurrying to build a direct relationship with the prime minister's office.

TOKYO -- Although the prime minister's leadership has grown stronger, Japan's party politics are adrift. The Liberal Democratic Party's Policy Research Council, its policy coordination body where lawmakers from the "policy tribes" once were active, is a shell of its former self. The Komeito party, which joined the LDP to form the ruling coalition in 1999, has also been coordinating less with the LDP itself and focusing more on strengthening its ties with the prime minister's office.

"Can you set up an Article 79 agency and move ahead with it?" On April 1, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, also the LDP president, discussed one of his policy ideas with LDP Secretary-General Toshihiro Nikai at the prime minister's office.

Sponsored Content

About Sponsored Content This content was commissioned by Nikkei's Global Business Bureau.

Nikkei Asian Review, now known as Nikkei Asia, will be the voice of the Asian Century.

Celebrate our next chapter
Free access for everyone - Sep. 30

Find out more