EXIT POLLS suggest victory for Shinzo Abe‘s ruling party.
Japanese went to the polls on Sunday under the shadow of the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was shot dead while giving a campaign speech on Friday.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held a minute’s silence for Abe at the headquarters of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) before announcing the winning candidates.
EXIT POLLS for the upper house election showed Abe’s ruling party is confident of a landslide victory, perhaps buoyed by what is seen as a wave of sympathy votes in a country still reeling. from the shock of Friday’s shooting.
Forecasts suggest the LDP and its ally Komeito could together win as many as 83 of the 125 seats up for grabs on Sunday. The Senate has a total of 248 seats, which are renewed by half every three years.
After Abe’s assassination, Sunday’s election took on new meaning, with all political leaders stressing the importance of free speech.