Tanaka in lead

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33581, 9 July 1974, Page 13

Tanaka in lead

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) TOKYO, July 8. The Liberal-Democratic Party led by the Prime Minister (Mr Tanaka) has taken 57 of the 107 seats so far declared in Japan’s Upper House elections, but according to a computer prediction the party will have a reduced majority.

The Japan Broadcasting Company gave the computer prediction of 129 seats for the I.D.P. in the 252-seat Upper House of the Diet (parliament), compared with 134 held by the ruling party before yesterday’s elections. According to the prediction the four main opposition parties and independents will have 114 seats. One hundred and thirty seats were at stake in yesterday’s poll. Of the results declared by early this afternoon, the Japan Socialist Party had taken 25 seats and the Japan Communist Party six. The Buddhist-oriented Komeito had captured 100 seats, the moderate Democratic Socialist Party three and independents six. Two of the L.D.P. candidates apparently guaranteed

seats were sons of two former Japanese Prime’ Ministers, Mr Ichiro Hatoyama and Mr Eisaku Sato. It was the heaviest voting on record for the Upper House, the New York Times News Service reported. More significant, it was an apparent reversal of the L.D.P.’s slow but steady decline in popularity over the last decade. The voters’ interest appeared to be high because of the inflation issue and because of charges by the Opposition parties that the governing Liberal Democrats had relied too much on big business support. The conservatives must win at least 63 of the 130 seats at stake in the bitterlyfought election to retain their long-time majority in the Upper House.