Despite Severe Punishment in Slush Fund Scandal... Kishida Cabinet Approval Rating Hits Lowest at 16.6%

Support Communication Poll... 1.4%p Drop Compared to Previous Month
Lowest Cabinet Approval Rating Since LDP Regained Power

Despite the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in Japan imposing severe disciplinary actions on lawmakers involved in the slush fund scandal, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's cabinet approval rating has once again hit a record low.

Despite Severe Punishment in Slush Fund Scandal... Kishida Cabinet Approval Rating Hits Lowest at 16.6%

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to a Kyodo News poll conducted from the 5th to the 8th, the approval rating for the Kishida cabinet was recorded at 16.6%, down 1.4 percentage points from last month's survey. Kyodo News reported that this is the lowest figure since the LDP regained power in December 2012.

The percentage of respondents who said they do not support the Kishida cabinet rose by 2.0 percentage points to 59.4%, while the LDP's support rate dropped 2.4 percentage points to 15.3%.

Regarding the disciplinary actions against lawmakers involved in the slush fund scandal, 56.4% responded that the punishments were "too lenient." Those who believed the measures were appropriate accounted for 29.2%.

Kyodo News reported, "Although the LDP disciplined executives from the Abe and Nikai factions over the party slush fund incident, the cabinet's approval rating has not recovered."

On the 4th, the LDP disciplined 39 out of 85 lawmakers related to the slush fund scandal. Among them, some received severe punishments such as a "recommendation to leave the party." However, Prime Minister Kishida, who is the party president, was excluded from the disciplinary actions, which caused dissatisfaction among some lawmakers.

Some factions within the LDP have long been creating slush funds by holding political fundraising events (parties) and returning the excess money to affiliated lawmakers who sold more "party tickets" than their quota.

In a public broadcaster NHK poll conducted from the 5th to the 7th, the approval rating for the Kishida cabinet also recorded a post-inauguration low of 23%.