Overview

• Saito Tetsuo notified LDP leader Sanae Takaichi on October 10 that Komeito would leave the coalition framework after last-ditch talks failed.
• Komeito will judge ties with the LDP on a policy-by-policy basis after the split, saying efforts to restore trust over politics-and-money issues fell short.
• The break raises the prospect of an LDP single-party cabinet and heightens the need for opposition cooperation to run the government.
• Reporting points to delays in convening a special Diet session to choose Ishiba Shigeru’s successor, with expectations shifting to October 20 or later and warnings of a prolonged political vacuum.
• Election cooperation is effectively off the table for now, LDP lawmakers voiced fears of policy stagnation and seat losses, and the two party leaders publicly aired mutual grievances.