2026-02-16
8 分钟Hello, Rosie Bloor here, co-host of The Intelligence, our daily news and current affairs podcast.
You're about to hear an article from the latest edition of The Economist, read aloud.
We hope you enjoy it.
The Liberal Democratic Party, or LDP,
has dominated Japanese politics since its founding in 1955,
ruling with only two brief interruptions.
Never has it won as decisively as it did in a snap election on February 8th,
when it took almost 70% of the seats in Parliament's powerful lower house.
Takeichi Sanaya, the triumphant Prime Minister, now has a historic chance to transform her country.
she must not squander it.
To live up to the expectations that her electoral gamble and huge victory have created,
Ms Takeichi needs to think bigger and broader.
She cannot treat her time in office as routine,
focused on short-term relief to ease the pain of today.
She must take Japan's long-term demographic and economic challenges head on.
She should also recognise that her country has a crucial role to play as a stabilising force in a turbulent world.
And she must be a leader for all of Japan, not only for her right-wing loyalists.
She must, in short, gamble all over again.
She has the backing.
Support for Mostakaichi came from across the country.