Two days after former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated while giving a campaign speech, his party, the Liberal Democratic Party, and its coalition scored a victory in the House of Councillors election.
The parliamentary victory on Sunday gives the coalition a two-thirds supermajority needed to amend a clause in the country’s constitution that renounces war, paving the way for Japan to bolster its military capabilities, an ideal that Abe had championed during his political career.
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The Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partners, including Komeito, secured more than 87 seats, surpassing their last supermajority in 2016 in the upper house of Japan’s Parliament, according to the New York Times.
Voter turnout also rose to 52%, up from 49% in 2019, despite concerns the election might not even take place after the attack on Friday.
Undeterred by the tragic events of the past few days, the Japanese people ensured their voices were heard by turning out to vote in the Upper House elections. As a former elected official, I congratulate Japan on its democratic example in the face of unconscionable violence.
— ラーム・エマニュエル駐日米国大使 (@USAmbJapan) July 10, 2022
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel congratulated the Japanese people for turning out to vote.
“Undeterred by the tragic events of the past few days, the Japanese people ensured their voices were heard by turning out to vote in the Upper House elections. As a former elected official, I congratulate Japan on its democratic example in the face of unconscionable violence,” Emanuel said.
Abe, 67, was shot twice on Friday while making a campaign speech in support of his party. Despite resuscitation efforts, including surgery and a blood transfusion, Abe was declared dead by that evening.
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The death of Abe, an influential figure in the country and across the world, came as a shock, as the country has strict gun laws preventing private citizens from owning handguns. Abe was the prime minister of Japan from 2012 to 2020 before resigning due to what he said was poor health.
