Japan PM's Election Gamble Pays Off

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took what the New York Times describes as the "biggest bet" of her three-month tenure, and the gamble has paid off. Takaichi called a snap parliamentary election for Sunday to take advantage of her popularity, and exit polls show that her Liberal Democratic Party is on track for a big win, per the AP. The LDP is almost certain to win a single-party majority, according to NHK public television and other major networks.

The huge jump from the pre-election share may allow Takaichi to make progress on a right-wing agenda that aims to boost Japan's economy and military capabilities as tensions grow with China and she tries to nurture ties with the United States. NHK says Takaichi's governing coalition led by the LDP could win more than two-thirds of the 465-seat lower house, the more powerful of the country's two-chamber parliament. That's a level that would allow the governing bloc to dominate house committee chairs to steer policy and budget bills. NHK, citing results of early vote counts, said the LDP alone secured 244 seats, surpassing a majority at 233.

Takaichi is hugely popular, but the governing LDP, which has ruled Japan for most of the last seven decades, has struggled with funding and religious scandals in recent years. The ultraconservative Takaichi, who took office as Japan's first female leader in October, pledged to "work, work, work," and her style, which is seen as both playful and tough, has resonated with younger fans. The opposition, despite the formation of a new centrist alliance and a rising far-right, is seen as too splintered to be a real challenger.