ASO IGNORES CALLS TO STEP DOWN; NO WORD ON

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 TOKYO 001437 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/J E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/25/2019 TAGS: PGOV JA SUBJECT: ASO IGNORES CALLS TO STEP DOWN; NO WORD ON ELECTIONS REF: A. TOKYO 1329 ¶B. TOKYO 1414 Classified By: Acting DCM Ronald J. Post; reasons 1.4(b/d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Rapidly falling popularity ratings, a string of local electoral defeats, internal party discord over the resignation of Communications Minister Kunio Hatoyama, a lackluster performance in a head-to-head debate with the opposition leader, and a growing dearth of justifications for delaying the inevitable have increased the pressure on Prime Minister Taro Aso to dissolve the Lower House for an early election. While media reports point to emerging indications that Aso will make his move by July 3 for an August 2 election, most Embassy contacts continue to believe that August 30 remains the earliest realistic opportunity in the current political environment. Those contacts are equally certain that Aso will ignore calls from within his own party to step down early and allow a fresh face to lead the party into the next Lower House election. End summary. Sagging Polls Show Preference for Change -------------- ¶2. (C) Public support for the administration of Prime Minister Taro Aso has fallen dramatically over the past month, according to the latest polls in Japan's major dailies, making clear that Aso has lost any momentum he gained from the former DPJ leader Ichiro Ozawa scandal in March. The Cabinet support rate has dipped into the upper teens in several polls for the first time since February, falling by anywhere from five to ten points, depending on the survey. Non-support has soared at a similar rate, exceeding the 70 percent mark in at least two major publications. ¶3. (C) The vast majority of recent polls have exhibited wide swings in voter preferences for main opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) leader Yukio Hatoyama and a DPJ-led administration over Aso and his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Even more troubling for the LDP are signs that respondents are once again deserting the ruling party for the opposition, rather than simply moving into the unaffiliated category. The lone bright spot for the LDP is Health Minister Yoichi Masuzoe's continued hold on first place in the list of top choices for prime minister among politicians from both parties. ¶4. (C) Taken as a whole, responses demonstrate the growing calls for a fundamental shift in Japan's political culture to an electorate that is tremendously dissatisfied with over a half century of "bureaucrat-driven" politics under the LDP. Close to two-thirds of respondents also registered disagreement with Aso's decision to accept the resignation of former Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Kunio Hatoyama over his (Hatoyama's) refusal to reappoint Yoshifumi Nishikawa to the top job at Japan Post, a decision that has proven extremely divisive within the LDP as well (Ref. A). LDP Unable to Gain Advantage -------------- ¶5. (C) Absent a major falling out within the DPJ or the emergence of another serious scandal, the ruling coalition has few opportunities to gain the upper hand in the short span before a Lower House election. Signs that Japan's sluggish economy may be emerging from the worst of the global financial crisis have failed to provide a much needed boost to the ruling party, despite administration attempts to attribute the reversal to Aso's record-large economic stimulus measures. The ruling coalition has also failed to gain ground from the June 19 trial of former Nishimatsu Construction President Mikio Kunisawa, despite the public re-airing of charges that Ozawa's state-funded secretary, TOKYO 00001437 002 OF 004 Takanori Okubo, awarded lucrative public works projects to the disgraced contractor in exchange for illegal political donations. ¶6. (C) The Tokyo District Court is expected to sentence Kunisawa to 18 months in prison on July 14, just two days after the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election. Okubo's trial, however, has been postponed until after the next Lower House election to avoid the appearance of political interference, rendering unlikely the emergence of any additional details linking Ozawa himself to the illegal contributions anytime soon. Newly-emerged allegations that triple-hatted Minister Kaoru Yosano may have accepted illegal donations have already supplanted news reports on the Nishimatsu scandal, although Yosano has denied any wrong-doing and promised to return any tainted funds. ¶7. (C) In what most media reports have characterized as an act of desperation, LDP Election Chair Makoto Koga met with Miyazaki Governor Hideo Higashikokubaru June 23 to seek his candidacy on the LDP proportional slate. The popular media personality agreed, but only on condition that he will be allowed to run for party president and that his reformist agenda is incorporated into the party manifesto. Several LDP members criticized Koga publicly for allowing the former comedian to turn the meeting into something of a media circus. Koga was unapologetic, noting the need for "new energy" to reform itself from within and restore public confidence. Local Elections Could be a Sweep for DPJ -------------- ¶8. (C) Successive losses in important mayoral races in Saitama, Chiba, and Nagoya have kept the LDP on the defensive of late. The increasing prospect of losses in the Shizuoka gubernatorial race on July 5 and the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly elections on July 12 signifies the distance the LDP will need to make up before the next Lower House election. Local elections are rarely decided based on party affiliation or national issues, but it will be difficult to argue that five straight losses is not reflective of a wider national mood. A loss in Tokyo could also strain relations between the LDP and junior coalition partner Komeito, Embassy contacts say. Former Prime Minister SHINZO Abe, an Aso supporter, asserted on television June 21 that the two upcoming local elections should not affect the Aso Cabinet, but conceded that the results could affect the minds of LDP lawmakers. Election Timing Tricky -------------- ¶9. (C) With nearly all of his priority legislation already enacted or en route to being passed, Aso has few reasons to justify waiting until the extended Diet session ends on July 28 to dissolve the Lower House. According to most estimates, over 90 percent of government-sponsored bills will have passed the Diet by mid-July, due in part to a less obstructionist stance by the DPJ as it seeks to speed up the election calendar. The only major legislation outstanding at this point is a proposed cargo inspections bill to bring Japan in line with the requirements of UN Security Council Resolution 1874, which is expected to be submitted to the Diet by the end of June (Ref. B). Embassy contacts note that it would be an embarrassment for Japan not to pass the measure after fighting so hard for the new enforcement regime at the UN. Press reports have also noted that Aso recently moved up a Cabinet meeting to approve budget guidelines for the fiscal year beginning April 1, 2009 from late July to the end of June, fueling speculation that he intends to dissolve the Lower House shortly thereafter. The media has also made much of the opening of Aso's local campaign office in Fukuoka. TOKYO 00001437 003 OF 004 ¶10. (C) The Constitution, the Diet Law, and the Public Offices Election Law lay down the following rules governing election timing: -- In cases where the Prime Minister dissolves the Lower House, an election must be held within forty days of dissolution, and a special session of the Diet convoked within 30 days of that election. -- When the Lower House term is allowed to run its four-year course, an election must be held within 30 days of the expiration of the term, and an extraordinary session convoked within 30 days of the new term of office. The current Lower House term ends on September 10. -- A Lower House election must be held during the weeklong period occurring between 24 and 30 days of the end of a Diet session, if the period in which the election has to be held coincides with a Diet session, or during a 23-day period after the end of a session. -- The minimum campaign period for a Lower House election is 12 days. -- Elections must be held on a Sunday. -- The Constitution technically gives the Emperor the authority to dissolve the Lower House, upon the advice and approval of the entire Cabinet, not just the Prime Minister. ¶11. (C) Given the foregoing, Aso needs to dissolve the Lower House prior to the Emperor's departure for overseas on July 3, or immediately upon his return on July 17, if he wants to call an election for August 2. Doing so would allow him to take credit for his decisive action in advance of the predicted electoral defeats in Shizuoka and Tokyo, but would brand him a lame duck at the G-8 Summit in Rome on July 8. This would also leave little space after the Tokyo election for Komeito's Soka Gakkai supporters to reposition themselves after transferring temporary residency to Tokyo for the TMG election, and decrease the chances of some sort of unanticipated but fortuitous DPJ stumble. The next three Sundays are out of the question, due to the anniversary of the Nagasaki bombing on August 9, the mid-Summer Obon holiday on August 16, and an inauspicious date on the Buddhist calendar for August 23, leaving August 30 as the next realistic option. The problem with August 30 and successive dates in September is that they fall within the dates that an election would have to take place anyway based on the expiration of the Lower House term on September 10, robbing Aso of his chance to appear decisive. Aso Ignores Calls to Step Down -------------- ¶12. (C) With his popularity steadily declining again, and party insiders questioning his resolution of the Japan Post appointment, calls are growing for Aso to step down in advance of an election. A number of LDP contacts have told the Embassy they favor replacing Aso with a fresh face to fight the election against the DPJ, but none of these contacts have much confidence that the party will be able to agree on a suitable replacement, or that anyone will want to step forward facing such long odds. Former PM ABE and Election Deputy Yoshihide Suga have argued strenuously against Aso's resignation, or even a Cabinet reshuffle for that matter, emphasizing the need for party unity. Other LDP Diet members have noted to the Embassy their desire to avoid the election of a fourth straight Prime Minister without benefit of a Lower House election. For his part, Aso reiterated to reporters June 22 that he has no intention of moving up the LDP election. His term expires September 30. ¶13. (C) Lower House member Taku Yamamoto has gained media attention over the past several weeks for collecting signatures seeking an early LDP party presidential election from 82 LDP Diet members, with verbal support from an additional 26. However, Embassy contacts are unanimous in TOKYO 00001437 004 OF 004 the opinion that Yamamoto's movement will fail to reach the threshold required by the LDP rules to effect a change, i.e., a majority of Diet members (216 out of the current 384) and prefectural chapters. Media reports have made much of the fact that LDP candidates are shunning any association with Aso in campaign literature or at campaign rallies. Some, according to the press, see a loss in the TMG election as a way to speed Aso's departure. Fewer than half of the LDP candidates in the TMG election see Aso as a suitable choice to lead the party, according to a recent survey. ZUMWALT