Only about one-third of Japanese support Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's government, and the number planning to vote for the ruling party and the opposition in a key mid-year poll is almost equal, a survey showed on Sunday.
Doubts about Hatoyama's leadership, including his ability to resolve a feud with Washington over a US Marine airbase and funding scandals have eroded his support and now appear to be eating away at that for his party as well.
Hatoyama this weekend reiterated he would keep his pledge to solve a feud over where to relocate a US airbase on the southern island of Okinawa by the self-imposed deadline of end-May, but hinted that he might step down if he could not.
Support for Hatoyama's government has slipped 5.1 points from February to 36.3 percent, a public opinion poll by Kyodo News Agency showed.
Asked which party they plan to vote for in an upper house election expected in July, 26.9 percent of the respondents said the ruling Democrats, while 26.3 percent preferred the opposition Liberal Democratic Party.