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The approval rating for the Cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba stood at 32.1 percent after the general election, a Kyodo News survey showed Tuesday, falling from 50.7 percent before the vote.
In the nationwide telephone survey conducted over two days from Monday, 53.0 percent of respondents said they do not want the ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito to stay in power after their election defeat, against 38.4 percent who hope the two parties will continue running the government.
The LDP has been struggling to regain public trust in the party in the wake of a slush funds scandal, in which some members failed to properly report income from fundraising parties.
The vast majority of respondents at 79.2 percent said they were opposed to scandal-hit members being assigned key positions after they were elected in Sunday’s House of Representatives election, while 16.3 percent were in favor.
Asked what their preferred government structure would be, 31.5 percent said “a new framework through political realignment,” while a minority government led by the LDP and Komeito was chosen by 18.1 percent.
Meanwhile, 28.6 percent said Ishiba should resign to take responsibility for the ruling coalition losing its majority in the election, while 65.7 percent felt it was unnecessary.
Most respondents at 91.4 percent believed the slush fund scandal led to the LDP’s loss of seats.
Only 23.9 percent felt the election results would lead to the resolution of issues related to money in politics, while 72.5 percent were unconvinced.
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