Prime Minister Kishida's Approval Rating Drops... Growing Calls for Resignation in Japan

Aso Vice President Expresses Dissatisfaction with Prime Minister Kishida

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is facing increasing calls for resignation locally as he has failed to boost his approval ratings following a slush fund scandal.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida [Photo by Yonhap News]

According to the Asahi Shimbun on the 18th, Hiroaki Saito, a member of the 'Aso faction' loyal to Taro Aso, the Vice President of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), said at a political fundraising event on the 16th, "Ultimately, someone must take responsibility for reaching this situation." After the event, Representative Saito clarified that his remarks were made with Prime Minister Kishida's resignation in mind.

Earlier, Taro Aso, the LDP's second-in-command and a supporter of the Kishida Cabinet, expressed dissatisfaction regarding the revision of the Political Funds Control Act following the slush fund issue, stating, "Reforms that leave future problems should not be made." Nevertheless, Prime Minister Kishida decided to strengthen certain regulations to complete the revision of the bill within the current regular Diet session ending on the 23rd.

Asahi explained that even within the 'Kishida faction' led by Prime Minister Kishida, skeptical evaluations are emerging regarding this approach. Inside the Kishida faction, remarks such as "It is difficult to continue like this" and "We have no choice but to produce something new (a new figure) in the presidential election" have been reported.

Support ratings for the Kishida Cabinet and the LDP in Japan have hit their lowest levels. According to a telephone survey conducted by Asahi over two days starting from the 15th, targeting 1,012 people, support for both the LDP and the Cabinet declined to 19% and 22%, respectively. This Cabinet approval rating is the lowest since the Cabinet's inauguration in 2021.