The Japanese prime minister’s decision to hold a snap election has paid off. Takaichi Sanae led her ruling Liberal Democratic Party to a historic win in Sunday’s vote, netting the LDP a two-thirds majority in the Lower House. A landslide victory for one, and a major loss for another. The main opposition party is trying to figure out its next steps, as its leaders say they intend to step down.
The co-leaders of Japan’s Centrist Reform Alliance say they will resign from their posts after the newly formed opposition party suffered a crushing defeat in Sunday’s Lower House election. The CRA, formed by two opposition parties, secured only 49 seats, or less than one-third of the seats the separate parties had before the poll.
NHK has learned that Japan plans to join a NATO-led initiative to provide US-made munitions and equipment to Ukraine. NATO and the United States established the mechanism in July 2025 to coordinate the purchase and delivery of US-manufactured munitions and equipment to Ukraine.