(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – Most people in Japan want the embattled leader of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) to step down, according to a poll by Asahi. 63 per cent of respondents think Ichiro Ozawa should resign as party leader.
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – Most people in Japan want the embattled leader of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) to step down, according to a poll by Asahi. 63 per cent of respondents think Ichiro Ozawa should resign as party leader.
Aside from a brief period in the 1990s, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has administered Japan’s government for more than five decades. An election to renew half of the House of Councillors seats took place in July 2007. Final results gave the opposition DPJ 60 of the 121 seats at stake, with the governing LDP winning 37 mandates. The opposition—with 137 seats—now holds a majority in the upper house of Japan’s Diet for the first time since the LDP was founded in 1955.
Since the retirement of Junichiro Koizumi, Japan has had three different LDP leaders and prime ministers. Shinzo Abe served from September 2006 to September 2007, and was replaced by Yasuo Fukuda. In September 2008, Fukuda announced he would step down as he felt "swamped" by the country’s issues. Foreign minister Taro Aso won an internal leadership ballot and was sworn in as Japan’s new prime minister.
Ozawa—a former member of the LDP—has been head of the opposition party since 2006. Ozawa has been urged to resign after his chief aide Takanori Okubo was accused of accepting close to $212,000 U.S. in illegal donations from Nishimatsu Construction.
On Mar. 26, DPJ lawmaker Yoko Komiyama pushed for Ozawa’s resignation, saying, "It would be best if he stepped down quickly."
On Mar. 31, Ozawa declared: "I must sincerely accept the [results of] the opinion polls and respond, but the final basis on which I will make my judgment is whether or not we can win the [next] election."
The next election to the House of Representatives must be held on or before Sept. 6, 2009. Sitting prime ministers can dissolve the Diet and call an early ballot at their discretion.
Polling Data
Should Ichiro Ozawa step down as leader of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ)?
|
Yes |
63% |
|
No |
24% |
Source: Asahi
Methodology: Interviews with 1,102 Japanese adults, conducted on Mar. 28 and Mar. 29, 2009. Margin of error is 2.2 per cent.
