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Japan Dissolves Parliament as Kishida Faces Oct. 31 Election

  • Any major loss of seats would deal a blow to new premier
  • Kishida seeks to raise wages in public and private sectors
Fumio Kishida on Oct. 4.Photographer: Toru Hanai/Bloomberg
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Japan’s powerful lower house of parliament was dissolved Thursday in a formal step for an Oct. 31 general election that could determine how long Prime Minister Fumio Kishida remains in office.

The election comes a little more than three weeks after Kishida took office as prime minister. Any major loss of seats could undermine the premier’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s faith in his leadership, increasing the chances he’ll be dispatched through the “revolving door” that claimed six Japanese premiers between 2007-2012.