JCP issues statement on the outcome of the general election

The Japanese Communist Party on February 9 issued a statement on the results of the House of Representatives (Lower House) election held on the previous day. The full text of the statement follows:

On the Outcome of the General Election

February 9, 2026
Standing Executive Committee of the Central Committee of the Japanese Communist Party

(1)

In the general election held on February 8, the Japanese Communist Party campaigned with the goal of securing 4.5 million votes and over 7.5% of the total in the proportional representation segment, while aiming to gain or increase seats in every proportional block and ensuring the retention of the seat in the Okinawa 1st District without fail. The outcome of the election was a significant setback, with the party’s seats reduced from eight to four.

In the proportional representation segment, the party’s vote count declined from 3,362,000 (accounting for 6.16% of the total) in the previous general election to 2,519,000 (4.40%), resulting in a reduction from seven seats to four.

In the Okinawa 1st District, the party and the “All Okinawa” forces combined their strength in a closely contested race, increasing the vote count by 3,400 from the previous election. However, the party ultimately lost the precious seat held by Akamine Seiken.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the voters who supported the Japanese Communist Party, as well as to the party members, supporters’ association members, and JCP supporters across the country who made dedicated efforts amidst heavy snow and cold temperatures. We sincerely apologize for our failure to deliver results that met your expectations.

We are determined to draw profound lessons from this election, ensure they are applied to future struggles, and achieve a comeback at the next opportunity.

(2)

As a result of the general election, the situation now is unprecedentedly dangerous in the post-war era in terms of advancing the “building of a war-ready state,” including the move to revise Article 9 of the Constitution.

Prime Minister Takaichi, relying solely on high cabinet approval ratings, adopted a strategy of forcing through the general election on the single point of “letting the people decide if Takaichi Sanae is the right choice,” which created a situation where the “Takaichi whirlwind” rapidly swept across the nation.

Consequently, the Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party secured well over two-thirds of the seats in the House of Representatives. When including other parties that are part of this rightward trend, a situation has emerged where an overwhelming majority of seats have been engulfed by LDP-led politics. The fact that the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, the leading opposition party, was effectively absorbed by the Komei Party through the formation of a new party and succumbed to LDP politics has further accelerated the rightward shift in Japanese politics.

The Japanese Communist Party confronted this attempt at a reactionary breakthrough head-on during the election campaign, strongly asserting that the authoritarian politics of Prime Minister Takaichi and the LDP must not be tolerated and that no blank check for constitutional revision should be granted. Such efforts demonstrated the true historical value of the party, which has persevered tirelessly for peace and social progress without compromise.

During the election campaign, the party responded to public demands in key areas such as the quality of life, the economy, security and diplomacy, and human rights, while advocating its unique proposals from the standpoint of correcting the “two distortions” of LDP politics: its “subordination to the United States” and its focus on meeting “big business interests.” We are convinced that the arguments the party put forward during the debates were, as a whole, reasonable and consistent with the interests of the general public. We are determined to make every effort, hand in hand with citizens, to fulfill the pledges made during the campaign.

Amidst the unparalleled danger in Japan’s post war history of building “a war-ready state,” the role of the Japanese Communist Party, which confronts Takaichi’s authoritarian politics head-on, has become indispensable.

The Japanese Communist Party issues a heartfelt appeal: Let us launch people’s struggles in every field to refuse to tolerate the authoritarian politics of the Takaichi administration, and to defend and advance peace, human rights, livelihoods, and democracy.

(3)

In terms of parliamentary seats, forces advancing the “building of a war-ready state”, led by Prime Minister Takaichi and the LDP, now have an overwhelming majority in the Lower House. However, this outcome harbors multiple layers of deep contradictions in its relationship with the general public.

The election results by no means represent a public mandate for the actual substance of the Takaichi-LDP administration’s politics. Although Prime Minister Takaichi launched the general election claiming to “seek a mandate on policies that divide national opinion,” she failed to explain the content of those policies to the voters. During her street speeches, she never spoke of the massive military buildup, the review of the Three Non-Nuclear Principles, or the revision of Article 9 of the Constitution, and she continued to evade televised debates with other party leaders. The only slogan she promoted was “responsible proactive fiscal policy,” but she never clarified its specific details.

This general election also presented serious problems from the perspectives of the Constitution and democracy. We must severely criticize the fact that Prime Minister Takaichi orchestrated and forced through this election using “coup-like” tactics—including the abuse of the right to dissolve the Diet in violation of the Constitution, and allowing only 16 days from dissolution to election day (the shortest in the post-war era), which denied voters even the time to properly consider the issues and each party’s policies.

Furthermore, it must be emphasized that the LDP received only 36.7% of the votes in the proportional representation segment; the fact that they secured over two-thirds of the seats is merely a result of the single-seat constituency system. Therefore, this “super-majority” is nothing more than a “fictitious majority”.

While the media reports on “Takaichi’s undisputed dominance,” her administration suffers from profound weakness and fragility in its relationship with the public.

We reiterate our call to launch people’s struggles in every field to surround the Takaichi administration with critical public opinion and concerned citizens’ movement, and to open the way for a new politics offering hope for a better future for all.

(4)

Regarding the question of why the Japanese Communist Party suffered a significant setback, we will listen closely to and learn from voices both inside and outside the party, deepen our self-examination in all respects, and clarify our assessment at the upcoming Central Committee Plenum.

The emergence of the “Takaichi whirlwind,” combined with the fact that many political parties catered or succumbed to the Takaichi administration, acted as a powerful headwind for our party, which confronts the Takaichi administration head-on. While our party’s indispensable role in standing up to Takaichi’s authoritarian politics could have provided an opportunity for our advancement and breakthrough had it reached a wider range of voters, we keenly feel that our party’s strength was simply insufficient to overcome such a headwind.

In light of these election results, we have come to the painful realization that building a strong and large party—both in quality and quantity, with generational succession at its core—is absolutely necessary to achieve a breakthrough for the Japanese Communist Party under any shift in the political situation.

Since last September, our party has been engaged in a “Concentrated Period to Build a Strong and Large Party in Both Quality and Quantity” to overcome the shortfall in our inherent strength; however, this general election took place just as this movement was finally beginning to gain momentum.

Aiming for the success of the 30th Party Congress in January next year, let us return to our party’s founding principle of alleviating the hardships of the people and further strengthening movements that respond to their sincere aspirations. At the same time, we must even more vigorously reinforce our study of the JCP Program, the Party Constitution, scientific socialism, and the history of the JCP. Let us uphold as the paramount lesson of this general election the goal of building a stronger and larger party that can achieve progress regardless of how the political situation unfolds, and let us strive together toward this end. Let us immediately begin our efforts to secure victory and a breakthrough in the nationwide local elections to be held in April next year.

With a worldview rooted in scientific socialism, which clarifies the laws of social development, and with scientific conviction in the party’s programmatic line, let us open the way to the future, holding firm to the belief that our cause is immortal no matter what difficulties we may face.