Buried deep in this report about Japanese politics is a delightful/terrifying story, depending on your point of view. From the BBC,
Japan’s PM vows to stay on despite bruising election loss.
The current Prime Minister is Shigeru Ishiba, head of the long-ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Despite the name, in Japanese politics, the LDP is considered to be a conservative/nationalist/right-leaning party.
The election was for 1/2 of the upper chamber of parliament, the House of Councillors. In Japan, parliament goes under the delightful name of the National Diet.
The LDP emerged from yesterday’s (Sunday’s) election with the most seats and the most votes but lost 18 seats from their previous position. What’s terrifying for the BBC is who gained, the Sanseito party. Sansieto gained the most seats of any party in the election yesterday, going from just 1 to 15.
If you believe Wikipedia, the name Sansieto translates to the political participation party, or the “Party of Do It yourself!” It has only existed in its current form since 2020, and is described as ultra-conservative, far-right populist.
The BBC’s analyst frets that,
[S]ome of the [LDP]’s support had gone towards the Sanseito party – who would now be saying things which “haven’t been said in public before by members of the upper house,” – noting the party’s pull towards “conspiracy theories, anti-foreign statements, [and] very strong revisionist views about history”.
I’m fascinated by the worldwide rise of “far-right” political parties in recent years. The BBC frets,
Support for the ruling coalition appears to have been eroded by candidates from the small, right-leaning Sanseito party, which drew conservative votes with its “Japanese First”, anti-immigration rhetoric.
Sanseito first gained prominence on YouTube during the Covid-19 pandemic, spreading conspiracy theories about vaccinations and a cabal of global elites.
But were they wrong? Wikipedia reports that the party holds a special appeal for young male voters.
Sound familiar?
