Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi may have found her answer to the question of how she legislates despite minority control of the government: Get more seats through a snap election.
Takaichi is reportedly considering dissolving the Lower House of the parliament upon its mandatory convocation later this month, which would prompt a general election sometime in February. Presumably, this would allow the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to pursue enough seats for at least a stable majority in the Lower House, which would ease her ability to pass legislation. Still, there are some problems with this plan that Takaichi and the LDP must work through if they hope for this gamble to pay off.
The simplest explanation for why Takaichi would move toward a snap election is that the LDP does not have enough seats to legislate comfortably and her administration has historically high approval ratings right now. The logic is that she strikes while her stock is high rather than when it starts to plummet. If she can succeed here, it will allow her to be more effective in her policy agenda, which will theoretically continue to keep public approval high and sustain her leadership atop the government.
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