Japan calls snap election

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announced yesterday that she will dissolve parliament on Friday, clearing the way for a snap election on February 8 that will likely convert her strong public approval into gains for her Liberal Democratic Party. Takaichi’s government has sustained popularity ratings of around 70 percent ever since she became Japan’s first female prime minister in October. If her election bid is successful, the LDP’s single-party majority that was lost under her predecessor will be restored. With a reclaimed majority, Takaichi would have the leverage needed to hasten Japan’s already-brisk remilitarization. “I am putting my future as prime minister on the line,” she told reporters. “I want the people to decide directly whether they can entrust the management of the country to me.”