IFES Election Guide | Elections: Japan House of Representatives 2021

At Stake in this Election:    

Government Structure:

Chief of State: Emperor NARUHITO (since 1 May 2019)
Head of Government: Prime Minister Fumio KISHIDA (since 29 September 2021)
Assembly: The Japanese National Diet (Kokkai, 国会) is a bicameral legislative assembly consisting of a lower house, the House of Representatives (Shūgiin, 衆議院) with 465 seats and an upper house, the House of Councillors (Sangiin, 参議院) with 245 seats.

Electoral System: [1] [2]

The emperor is hereditarily appointed and serves for life.
The prime minister is appointed by the National Diet (Kokkai)
In the House of Councillors (Sangiin), 148 members are elected from 47 multi-seat constituencies using a single non-transferable vote. The remaining 100 seats are determined using an open party list system of proportional representation, in which the entirety of Japan is considered one electoral district. Councillors serve six-year terms.
In the House of Representatives (Shūgiin), 289 members are elected using a simple majority vote in single-member constituencies. The remaining 176 are determined by a proportional representation system using the D’Hondt method. They are elected from eleven multi-member constituencies ranging from six to twenty-six seats, with allocation of seats based on the parties' share of the national vote in the 11 large districts. Representatives serve four-year terms.

Last Election:

The previous election for the House of Representatives was held on 22 October 2017. 56,947,831 voters participated in the election. Incumbent Prime Minister Shinzō Abe's governing coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the Komeito party retained their seats [3]; the LDP won 284 seats, and the Komeito party won 29 seats. [4]

Main Parties in this Election:

Party: Liberal Democratic Party (LDP/Jimintō) / Jiyū-Minshutō
- Leader: Fumio KASHIDA
- Seats won in last election: 284
Party: Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP or Minshutō) / Rikken-minshutō
- Leader: Kenta IZUMI
- Seats won in last election: 55
Party: Japan Innovation Party / Nippon Ishin no Kai
- Leaders: Ichirō MATSUI and Toranosuke KATAYAMA
- Seats won in last election: 11
Party: Komeito (NKP) / Kōmeitō
- Leader: Natsuo YAMAGUCHI
- Seats won in last election: 29
Party: Japanese Communist Party (JCP) / Nihon Kyōsan-tō
- Leader: Leader: Kazuo SHII
- Seats won in last election: 12
Party: Democratic Party of the People (DPP) / Kokumin Minshu-tō
- Leader: Yūichirō TAMAKI
- Seats won in last election: New
Party: Reiwa Shinsengumi / Reiwa Shinsengumi
- Leader: Tarō YAMAMOTO
- Seats won in last election: 29
Party: Social Democratic Party / Shakai Minshu-tō (Shamin-tō)
- Leader: Mizuho FUKUSHIMA
- Seats won in last election: 2

Population and Registered Voters:

Gender Data:

Female Population: 64,828982 (November 2021 est.) [7]
Is Japan a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 July 1980) [8]
Has Japan ratified CEDAW: Yes (25 June 1985) [9]
Gender Quota: No [10]
Female Leaders in this election: Yes (Mizuho FUKUSHIMA of the Social Democratic Party)
Number of Female Legislators: 47 out of 465 [11]
Human Development Index (HDI) Position: Rank 19 at 0.919 (2020) [12]
Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Low [13]

Disability Data: