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2w ago

Polls Put Takaichi on Track for Big Lower-House Win Ahead of Snap Election

Polling strength reflects youth enthusiasm fueled by a consumer “Sanamania.”

Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae at a campaign event in Shiroishi, Saga prefecture, Feb. 5, 2026 (Yomiuri Shimbun photo via AP).
Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae (center) holds hands with Yoshida & Co. founder Kichizo Yoshida and Japan Innovation Party leader Hirofumi Yoshimura at an election campaign event in Tokyo, Jan. 27, 2026.
Image
Sanae Takaichi, Japan's prime minister and president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), speaks at an LDP election rally in Kawagoe, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, on Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. Traders are bracing for increased volatility as the Feb. 8 lower house election approaches. Photographer: Soichiro Koriyama/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Overview

  • Japan votes on Sunday, February 8, in snap lower-house elections called by Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae.
  • Multiple surveys suggest her governing coalition is positioned for a sizable victory and could retake an outright LDP majority.
  • Reuters-cited polling indicates the LDP could capture up to about 300 of the chamber’s 465 seats.
  • Takaichi’s personal approval is especially strong among younger voters, with a pop-culture consumer boom and a far larger social-media following than the opposition leader.
  • Analysts caution that party approval trails her personal ratings and that uneven youth turnout could limit how fully her popularity converts into district wins.