Japan LDP proposes compromise to reduce Lower House seats

Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has presented a compromise proposal to reduce the number of proportional representation seats in the House of Representatives by 31. The proposal was introduced during a meeting involving nine political parties focused on election system reform for the lower chamber of the Diet.

Previously, the LDP and its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, had submitted a bill to automatically reduce these seats by 45—approximately 10 percent of the chamber's 465 total seats—unless an agreement was reached within a year. The current revised proposal incorporates suggestions from the opposition Democratic Party for the People, which argues that seat reductions are necessary to reflect Japan's declining population.

While the LDP aims to reach a final conclusion by the end of this month, it remains uncertain if a consensus will be achieved. Both ruling and opposition sides have previously agreed to reach a decision on reforms based on the existing system of combining single-seat constituencies and proportional representation, while a third-party panel of experts considers a more extensive overhaul.