Success and Scandal: The Liberal Democratic Party of Japan

The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) of Japan is an inclusive electoral machine. Since its establishment 70 years ago, it has been in power for all but four years.

Explore the history, philosophy of the Liberal Democratic Party and the reasons for its success over the past decades:

How did everything begin?

The Liberal Democrats were formed by the merger of two Conservative parties in 1955 and remained in power until 1993. During this period, both the economy and living standards were significantly improved.

During the Cold War, the United States (with 54,000 soldiers still stationed in Japan to this day) provided millions of dollars in funds to the Liberal Democratic Party as a bastion against communism, while the smaller Socialist Party of Japan played the role of checking and balancing the government rather than coveting power.

During this process, the Liberal Democratic Party attracted various special interest groups, including agricultural, business and religious groups, leading to a series of corruption scandals.

What does the Liberal Democratic Party believe in?

Beneath the surface lies intense factional conflicts. Since 1955, the leadership has changed frequently 27 times, which actually also represents changes in the government.

The Liberal Democratic Party is led entirely by men, and currently only 13% of its members in the Diet are women. In 2021, women were invited to important party meetings but were prohibited from speaking.

The party has always supported the government’s large-scale spending, pro-market economy policies, conservative social values and the establishment of a solid alliance with the United States.

But it is a highly inclusive group, featuring both those who support the government’s power, political doves who value economic growth, and nationalists who advocate traditional family values.

Analysts said that their actions were not based on any specific ideology but were in line with the will of the voters.

Despite the serious divisions within the Liberal Democratic Party, the various factions still chose to unite in order to remain in power.

When did they lose power?

In 1993, after the bursting of Japan’s bubble economy and corruption scandals in the 1980s, the Liberal Democratic Party was ousted from power for the first time.

However, this fragile coalition government composed of a small group of Liberal Democratic Party defectors lasted less than a year, and the Liberal Democratic Party regained power in 1994.

In 2009, the Liberal Democratic Party suffered another crushing defeat, lost power and was replaced by the center-left Democratic Party.

The policy mistakes of the Democratic Party and its clumsy response to the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster led to the Liberal Democratic Party led by Shinzo Abe regeding power at the end of 2012.

Why is the Liberal Democratic Party popular?

Japan’s electoral system also benefits the well-funded and well-organized Liberal Democratic Party, which has a network of supporters and special interest groups across the country.

This system prevented small parties from remaining in power for a long time.

What’s happening now?

Since 2012, the Liberal Democratic Party has been in power by forming a coalition government with the moderate Komeito Party, which has received support from the Buddhist group Soka Gakkai.

About a year ago, due to voters’ dissatisfaction with inflation and new scandals, its predecessor Prime minister Fumio Kishida stepped down, and Shigeru Ishiba subsequently became the president of the Liberal Democratic Party.

Kishida was in power for three years and succeeded Yoshihide Suga, who in turn succeeded Shinzo Abe, who was renowned for his nationalist views and “Abenomics”.

After Abe’s assassination in 2022, the Liberal Democratic Party faced strong public protests after it was discovered that its members managed secret funds and underreported fundraising income.

This crisis is regarded as a major factor for the Liberal Democratic Party’s recent electoral defeat.

Despite the continuous decline in the support rate of the Liberal Democratic Party, the opposition camp remains fragmented and has failed to serve as an effective political alternative.