Key points
- Liberal Democratic Party has governed Japan almost continuously since 1955
- 75pc of people thought the gift voucher distribution was problematic: Asahi poll
- Ishiba apologised on Friday “for causing trouble and worry to many people”
ISLAMABAD: Approval ratings for Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s government have dropped sharply, polls showed Monday, as the leader faces a backlash for distributing expensive gift vouchers to rookie ruling-party lawmakers.
According to AFP, the Liberal Democratic Party, which has governed Japan almost continuously since 1955, has been convulsed by a series of corruption scandals in recent years, including one over kickbacks to lawmakers that sank Ishiba’s predecessor.
Just 26 per cent of voters polled by the Asahi Shimbun daily expressed support for Ishiba’s cabinet, a dramatic fall from the 40 per cent who felt similarly in the same survey in February.
A separate survey by the Yomiuri Shimbun daily put support for the administration at 31 per cent, down from 39 per cent in February.
Lowest since October
Both were the lowest since Ishiba took office in October, according to AFP.
Ishiba, 68, has come under fire for handing out gift vouchers each worth 100,000 yen ($670) to 15 new LDP lawmakers — a move he has defended as legally sound and not a political donation.
Grilled by opposition MPs in parliament, Ishiba apologised on Friday “for causing trouble and worry to many people” over the voucher scandal.
Ishiba said the vouchers — which he paid for personally — were intended as a token of appreciation, not a donation, for the families of lawmakers who took office for the first time after last year’s general election.
On Monday, Ishiba apologised again, saying “there was a discrepancy between the popular conception” and his practice of sending gift vouchers.
The Asahi poll showed that 75 per cent of people thought the gift voucher distribution was problematic, against 23 per cent who thought it wasn’t.
However, 60 per cent thought Ishiba should stay as the premier, compared to 32 per cent who wanted him to step down, according to the poll of 1,137 voters.
In the Yomiuri poll, 75 per cent saw the gift vouchers as a problem, against 19 per cent who did not.
Flagging support
Japanese media reported that flagging support could provoke attempts within the LDP to pressure Ishiba to step down ahead of an election in July for parliament’s upper house, according to AFP.
Ishiba held a snap general election in October after being selected as prime minister, but voters already angry over corruption within the LDP and inflation dealt him a blow.
They deprived his coalition of a majority in parliament’s powerful lower house, in the worst election result in 15 years for the LDP, which has governed Japan almost continuously since 1955.
Since the election, the party and its junior coalition partner Komeito have needed opposition support to pass legislation.
A third poll by the Mainichi Shimbun showed 23 per cent of voters supported Ishiba’s cabinet, down from 30 per cent in February, with 78 per cent calling the vouchers a problem, according to AFP.
Nikkei survey
According to a report published by Nova News on February 24, 2025, the approval rating of the Japanese Prime Minister’s government Shigeru Ishiba dropped to 40 per cent in the survey conducted by the Japanese daily newspaper “Nikkei” and TV Tokyo, down 3 per centage points from the January poll, marking the lowest level since Ishiba took office last October.
The disapproval rating rose 2 per centage points to 52 per cent, the highest level so far. Ishiba had met with the president of the United States Donald Trump on February 7, and 47 per cent of respondents in the new poll approved the outcome of the meeting, while 42 per cent said they were disappointed.
The two leaders had confirmed that Japan and the United States would strengthen their bilateral alliance.
Fight against inflation
According to the report published by Nova News, when asked what the most pressing issues facing the Ishiba government were, with multiple answers allowed, the fight against inflation was cited by 44 per cent of respondents, followed by the overall economy at 34 per cent and the country’s pension system at 29 per cent.
Of those who appreciated the government, 42 per cent cited its reliability, while 25 per cent appreciated the central role played by the LDP, Japan’s largest party led by Ishiba. Of those who disapproved of the government’s performance, 32 per cent cited inadequate policies and 29 per cent cited the LDP’s centrality.
Support for Ishiba’s party fell by 3 per centage points to 30 per cent, while the Constitutional Democratic Party, the largest opposition party, rose from 10 per cent to 11 per cent.
