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Opposition pulls ahead of Abe's LDP

Japan's main opposition party was ahead of the ruling bloc in a public opinion poll released yesterday, a day after campaigning kicked off in a heated parliamentary election that could be a major test of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling coalition.

About 28 percent of the survey's respondents said they would vote for the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan, while only 21 said they would support Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), said the Yomiuri Shimbun poll.

The results portend a tough fight for Abe's beleaguered government in the July 29 polls, as candidates vie for half of the 242 seats in the parliament's less-powerful upper chamber.

The remaining 121 seats are not up for election.

The popularity of Abe's 10-month-old government has plummeted since he lost three Cabinet ministers and was hit by a scandal in which millions of pension records went missing.

Electoral defeat would not immediately threaten the ruling coalition's hold on power because it has a commanding majority in the lower house. But a loss would cause embarrassment and prompt party leaders to force Abe from office.

The Yomiuri three-day survey was conducted through Thursday, just as the official campaign season opened and candidates hit the streets.

Support for the opposition Democrats was up from 25 percent in another survey conducted July 3 to 5. Support for Abe's LDP slipped from 23 percent in the earlier poll.

When voters go to polling stations, they cast two ballots. One is for a single-seat system, in which ballots are cast for specific individuals.

Another is for the proportional representation system, in which they vote for parties or individuals.

The Yomiuri poll interviewed 1,028 eligible voters nationwide by telephone. No margin of error was given.

The support rate for the Cabinet dropped to 30.2 percent, down 1.8 percentage points from the previous poll, while the disapproval rate rose to 57.7 percent, up 3.8 percentage points, the newspaper said.

Also, Japan's top government spokesman, Yasuhisa Shiozaki, Chief Cabinet Secretary said yesterday he has notified police after receiving an e-mail threatening to attack him.

The report follows the arrest on Thursday of a former elementary school teacher who reportedly sent e-mails to LDP Secretary General Hidenao Nakagawa last month and this month, threatening to shoot him, according to Tokyo Metropolitan Police.

Sakae Yamaguchi, 64, used a computer at his home to send e-mails using aliases, a police spokesman said on condition of anonymity, citing protocol.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki said the e-mail he received was similar to the ones sent to Nakagawa.

The police were investigating, according to the spokesman.

"The Abe government will continue to carry out reforms ... without ever yielding to resistance or intimidation," Shiozaki told reporters.
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