Komeito, the Liberal Democratic Party's coalition partner, is growing increasingly concerned about the success of the Ishin parties, which include both Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party) and the regional party Osaka Ishin, in the recent regional elections.
Osaka Ishin won the majority of seats in the Osaka prefectural and city assemblies, casting a shadow over the cooperative agreement between Komeito and the Ishin parties for the next House of Representatives election. Of Komeito's current nine lower house members elected from single-seat constituencies, six were elected from Osaka and Hyogo prefectures. As a result, Komeito is uneasy about the Ishin parties' next move.
"It all depends on what the Ishin parties will do," Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi said after a meeting of the ruling parties at the Prime Minister's Office on Monday. "I would like to keep an eye on how things develop."
