This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/15/world/asia/abe-appears-to-win-landslide-victory-in-parliamentary-elections.html
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Abe Appears to Win Landslide Victory in Parliamentary Elections | Abe Appears to Win Landslide Victory in Parliamentary Elections |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| TOKYO — The governing party of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appeared headed toward a landslide victory in the parliamentary elections on Sunday that Mr. Abe described as a referendum on his economic-growth policies, but that failed to draw much enthusiasm from doubtful Japanese voters. | |
| With vote counting still underway, Mr. Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party had won 227 of the 475 seats up for grabs in the powerful Lower House, with 136 seats still undecided, according to Japan’s state-owned broadcaster NHK. Exit polls by the broadcaster showed the party on course to win as many as 306 seats, enough to keep its commanding majority in the chamber. Before the election, the Liberal Democrats held 295 seats. | With vote counting still underway, Mr. Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party had won 227 of the 475 seats up for grabs in the powerful Lower House, with 136 seats still undecided, according to Japan’s state-owned broadcaster NHK. Exit polls by the broadcaster showed the party on course to win as many as 306 seats, enough to keep its commanding majority in the chamber. Before the election, the Liberal Democrats held 295 seats. |
| A smiling Mr. Abe appeared before television cameras at the Tokyo headquarters of his party, where he affixed red roses to the names of victorious Liberal Democratic candidates. Last month, Mr. Abe called the snap elections after growth data showed that Japan’s once-recovering economy had slipped back into recession. | A smiling Mr. Abe appeared before television cameras at the Tokyo headquarters of his party, where he affixed red roses to the names of victorious Liberal Democratic candidates. Last month, Mr. Abe called the snap elections after growth data showed that Japan’s once-recovering economy had slipped back into recession. |
| Mr. Abe said he had called the elections to gain a new mandate from voters to continue with his policies known as Abenomics, which so far have amounted to the central bank pumping cash into the economy. However, he has given only vague indications of what he will now do with that mandate, or what kind of growth-inducing policies he will pursue. | Mr. Abe said he had called the elections to gain a new mandate from voters to continue with his policies known as Abenomics, which so far have amounted to the central bank pumping cash into the economy. However, he has given only vague indications of what he will now do with that mandate, or what kind of growth-inducing policies he will pursue. |
| Despite the size of his party’s apparent victory on Sunday, political analysts said the win did not represent a strong show of support by Japanese voters. Rather, with opposition parties appearing too disorganized or unfocused to mount much of a challenge, voters appeared to feel they had no choice but to support the Liberal Democrats, analysts said. | Despite the size of his party’s apparent victory on Sunday, political analysts said the win did not represent a strong show of support by Japanese voters. Rather, with opposition parties appearing too disorganized or unfocused to mount much of a challenge, voters appeared to feel they had no choice but to support the Liberal Democrats, analysts said. |
| In fact, many Japanese appeared to decide not to vote at all. While the election authorities have yet to announce the size of Sunday’s turnout, pre-election polls predicted that a smaller percentage of eligible voters may have cast a ballot than in any election in postwar Japanese history. | In fact, many Japanese appeared to decide not to vote at all. While the election authorities have yet to announce the size of Sunday’s turnout, pre-election polls predicted that a smaller percentage of eligible voters may have cast a ballot than in any election in postwar Japanese history. |
| The largest opposition group, the Democratic Party of Japan, trailed far behind, with 39 seats, though NHK projections showed it likely to surpass its pre-election total of 62 seats. | The largest opposition group, the Democratic Party of Japan, trailed far behind, with 39 seats, though NHK projections showed it likely to surpass its pre-election total of 62 seats. |
| One of the few winners within the opposition was the tiny Communist Party of Japan, with 13 seats, already besting its pre-election total of eight seats. | One of the few winners within the opposition was the tiny Communist Party of Japan, with 13 seats, already besting its pre-election total of eight seats. |