Diet Session Set on August 1
The parties in the Diet agreed on convoking an extraordinary session of the Diet on August 1st. The House of Councillors will elect new speaker in the session, following the Upper House election in which the leading coalition lost its majority. The opposition parties are united to pass a bill to freeze temporary gasoline tax to support the consumers suffering from persistent price inflation, as the first attempt for them to pressure the leading coalition.
Since the leading coalition, the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito, lost majority in the Upper House at the election on July 20th, it is possible that the opposition parties elect their own speaker, if they are united to elect one name. However, it is unclear whether fragmented opposition parties, from communists to new ultra-right party, can agree on voting for a common speaker, even though the biggest opposition party, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDPJ), hopes other opposition parties to elect one of their members. The LDP, as the biggest party, hopes to elect one of their members.
The election has no candidate. Every voter can vote for any member in the House. But each party ordinary concentrates their votes for one person. The member who achieved majority will be the speaker. If no one gets majority, run-off election will be held by two members who collected most votes. In the run-off, the member who obtained more votes will be the winner, even if the person does not reach the majority in all members.
Although the session is supposed to last only five days, which is necessary to elect new speaker and vice-speaker, five opposition parties agreed on submitting a bill for abolishing temporary rate for gasoline tax. Those parties are the CDPJ, Japan Innovation Party, the Democratic party for the People, Reiwa Shinsengumi and Japan Communist Party, which has a seat in Committee on Rules and Administration of the House of Representatives.
Those five parties, co-sponsoring with Conservative Party of Japan and Sanseito, submitted the same bill to the ordinary session of the Diet in June. Although the bill failed to pass the Diet at the time, it showed that the opposition parties could be united for one bill. After losing majority in the Upper House, the leading coalition seems not to be able to refuse the bill in the extraordinary session in August.
Ishiba faces criticisms from young members of the LDP against his decision to stay as the prime minister without taking responsibility for serious decline of seats in the Upper House election. If Ishiba announces his resignation before the extraordinary session, it is likely that the opposition parties will request the election for new prime minister.
The LDP is not ready to elect new prime minister so far. That is why Ishiba is supposed to refrain from announcing his resignation, even though he hopes to step down. Ishiba can buy the time for settling internal frustration in the LDP as long as the Diet session continues.
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