Japan's ruling bloc will have a tough time keeping its vital two-thirds majority in parliament's lower house in the next election, the government's junior partner said on Friday, an outcome that would deepen a policy deadlock. Akihiro Ota, leader of the New Komeito party, told Reuters in an interview that a snap election was possible from autumn onward, but he added that it was first vital to implement steps to regain the support of voters.
Opposition parties won control of parliament's upper house last year and only the ruling bloc's two-thirds majority in the more powerful lower house enables it to enact bills rejected by the upper chamber. With Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda's cabinet ratings near rock bottom, the ruling coalition could face a tough battle in a lower house election that must be held by September next year.
"It will by no means be easy to win a two-thirds majority," Ota said in the interview at the party's headquarters in Tokyo. "The desirable time (for an election) is when the ruling parties and government win the people's trust. "Now is not the best time," he said, but added: "From autumn onward, we are in the midst of battle and I think there could be an election any time from then on."