Japan under Abe: toward Moderation or Nationalism?

In Jul 2013, Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its coalition partner, the Komeito, scored an impressive victory in the House of Councilors elections. Out of the 121 contested seats, the LDP won 65 and the Komeito 11. With this victory, the LDP-Komeito ruling coalition now controls 135 out of 242 seats (about 55%) in the upper house. This win follows the Dec 2012 triumph in the House of Representatives election, which brought Shinzo Abe and the LDP back to power by taking 294 out of 480 seats. Prime Minister Abe deserves much credit for this twin victory. After his disappointing first tenure as prime minister in 2006-07, he learned from his mistakes and decided to focus on the economy for this term. Soon after assuming the prime ministership again in Dec 2012, Abe implemented a bold and risky plan to revive the Japanese economy by radically expanding the money supply and boosting spending. Here, Mochizuki and Porter examine whether the Jul 2013 electoral victory embolden him to pursue his nationalist agenda, or will he remain moderate and pragmatic.