Tokyo. The Liberal Democratic Party and Nippon Ishin no Kai have broadly agreed to form a coalition government, clearing the way for Sanae Takaichi to become the country’s first female prime minister. Kyodo news agency gave this information on Sunday. Kyodo reported that LDP leader Sanae Takaichi and small right-wing group head Hirofumi Yoshimura are scheduled to sign a coalition agreement on Monday.
However, no statement has come from either party on this. Nippon Ishin co-chief Fumitake Fujita raised hopes for a deal on Friday, saying the two parties had made “major progress” in coalition talks. Nippon Ishin lawmakers will vote for Takaichi in parliament elections on Tuesday to elect the prime minister.
Meanwhile, there is also news that (news agency reported) the party is not planning to send ministers in the Takaichi cabinet in the initial phase. This would be inferior to the full alliance formed with Komeito, the LDP’s long-time ally, which has raised concerns about the stability of the incoming government.
Fujita told reporters on Sunday evening that talks were in the final stages and his fellow lawmakers had entrusted Yoshimura and him with the responsibility of making a final decision on the matter for the party. He said his decision would be announced on Monday, but declined to discuss it openly.
“I don’t know how the picture we present tomorrow will be evaluated, but I think we are moving toward tomorrow with a relationship of trust deepening, and I believe the other party is thinking the same thing,” Fujita said.
After winning the presidency of the ruling LDP earlier this month, Takaichi’s path to succeeding Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba seemed almost certain. But then Komeito pulled out of its 26-year-old alliance, leading to talks with rival parties to select the next prime minister.
Kyodo said that in an effort to get Nippon Ishin on board, the LDP has offered to ban donations from companies and other organizations and to continue working toward exempting food items from Japan’s sales tax.
Nippon Ishin has proposed removing taxes on food items for two years. Takaichi, a fiscal affairs expert, has called for more spending and tax cuts to provide relief to consumers from rising inflation and criticized the Bank of Japan’s decision to raise interest rates.
