LDP's Kishida & Komeito's Yamaguchi Reaffirm Their Coalition But Tensions Continue To Simmer

Japanese Prime Minister and ruling Liberal Democratic Party leader Fumio Kishida and junior coalition party Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi emerged from their regular meeting in the PM's office reaffirming their intention to maintain the governing coalition, despite tensions over the electoral cooperation between the two parties.

• Frictions resurfaced as Komeito said it will not endorse any LDP candidates in Tokyo in the next lower house election, which is not due until 2025 unless Kishida calls a snap poll. Komeito took the decision after the LDP refused to allow Komeito to field its own candidate in Tokyo Constituency no. 28 with the LDP's support.
• Senior officials from both parties held meeting to defuse tensions over the past few days. LDP Secretary General Toshimitsu Motegi told his Komeito counterpart Keiichi Ishii that the largest party is still planning to endorse Komeito candidates in Saitama Constituency no. 14 (where Ishii is planning to run) and Aichi Constituency no. 16.
• Sankei ran an opinion piece noting that the coordination between the LDP and Komeito has become more difficult as several veteran lawmakers have been sidelined or retired. The newspaper reports that the weekly meetings between the two parties are much shorter than before.
• This comes as Komeito is fighting to maintain relevance after disappointing showings in the 2022 upper house election and 2023 local elections, with analysts pointing to its aging electoral base. There has been speculation that the LDP could consider swapping Komeito for a different coalition partner, albeit at this point most see it as unlikely.