Overview
- LDP secretary-general Shunichi Suzuki said Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will detail the plan at a Jan. 19 press conference.
- The ordinary Diet session opens Jan. 23, when dissolution is expected, with officials coordinating for a campaign start around Jan. 27 and a possible Feb. 8 vote.
- If voting is held on Feb. 8, the dissolution-to-ballot period would be 16 days, the shortest since World War II, according to the Yomiuri Shimbun.
- Officials are weighing a temporary budget because a snap poll would likely delay passage of the fiscal 2026 budget past the end of March.
- The election will contest all 465 lower-house seats as the LDP governs with a slim majority backed by the Japan Innovation Party following Komeito’s exit, and opposition parties criticize the timing over cost-of-living concerns.