Kishida administration defends appointment of prime minister's son as senior aide
While placing family members in influential government positions isn’t rare, even among democracies, hereditary politics is particularly entrenched in Japan.
As parliament reconvenes, questions loom over LDP-Komeito ties
The kind of close, informal connections senior members of previous LDP-led governments had with senior Komeito officials appears to be lacking under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
Kishida may face political headwinds after controversial Abe state funeral
Ruling party ties to the Unification Church and price hikes have also hurt the popularity of Kishida's government.
Japan's junior ruling party Komeito approves 8th term for leader
At Sunday's Komeito convention, the party retained Keiichi Ishii as secretary-general and newly picked Yosuke Takagi as policy chief.
As state funeral looms, critics assail Abe's legacy on democracy
As prime minister, Abe was mired in scandals and oversaw the creation of a system that critics say gave him an authoritarian-like command over politics, eroding democracy in Japan.
Kishida would be riding high except for a political misstep
By going for a unity Cabinet, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was forced to bring in members from factions that were at greater risk of being linked with the Unification Church.
Lawmakers' attendance at Abe state funeral largely split along party lines
While most are making their decision based on their party’s relationship with the late politician, there are individual exceptions in both the ruling and opposition parties.
Lessons for the LDP from Okinawa's gubernatorial election
The LDP had better get its house in order if it wants to even begin to reverse the trend of opposition-supported candidates winning office in Okinawa.
The LDP this month said that 179 out of 379 members it surveyed were found to have interacted with the church.
Former members of Unification Church rail at politicians who embraced it
The assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in July has opened a debate over the church and has shone a spotlight on its close ties with the ruling LDP.
Opposition parties split over Abe state funeral as CDP says it won't attend
The government's failure to address concerns over the funeral's necessity, the decision-making process for the event and its cost are some of the reasons raised for the CDP's decision.
How Japan's political system linked the Unification Church with lawmakers
One problem faced by Japan is that there are institutional and customary factors that allow fringe organizations to maintain access to politicians at the highest levels of government.
