Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba says he will remain in office after his ruling coalition suffered a defeat in upper house elections, prompting some of his own party to deliberate his future as the opposition weighed a no-confidence motion.
The embattled premier told a news conference on Monday that he would remain in office to oversee tariff talks with the United States and other pressing matters such as rising consumer prices that are straining the world’s fourth largest economy.
“For this reason, although I’m acutely aware of our grave responsibility for the election results, in order to not let politics become stagnant, I believe I must fulfil my responsibility as the party with the most votes and to the people of the country, while listening carefully and sincerely to the voices of the local people,” he said.
Ishiba’s coalition won 47 seats in the 248-seat House of Councillors in Sunday’s election, three short of the 50 it needed to retain control of the upper chamber. The outcome left Ishiba’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and junior partner Komeito with a combined 122 deputies in the upper chamber, which fills half of its seats in elections every three years.
