The LDP and Kōmeitō failed to secure an absolute majority for the first time since 2009, though the LDP remains the largest party in the lower house.
The LDP is likely to stay in power – and Ishiba Shigeru may even stay on as prime minister – but the process of assembling a working majority will not be easy.
The next Japanese government is likely to be weaker, less energetic, and more inward-looking than the post-2012 LDP-Kōmeitō governments, with palpable policy consequences.
