Kishida Cabinet Approval Rating Rises After Punishments in Fund Scandal
The approval rating for the Kishida Cabinet has risen to 26%, while the disapproval rating has fallen to 62%, according to a recent Asahi Shimbun survey. This increase comes after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) punished 39 lawmakers over a political fund scandal.
The approval rating for the Kishida administration has been below 30% for seven consecutive months since October, reaching a record-low 21% in February. However, the rate has been inching upward since then. In the previous survey conducted in March, the approval rating was 22%, while the disapproval rating was 67%.
The LDP punished the lawmakers on April 9th, following a scandal that dealt a serious blow to the party and the Cabinet. The scandal involved underreported revenues from fundraising parties, which came under scrutiny during a Diet session.
The latest approval rating is one point above the 25% recorded in November, after the scandal first emerged.
The survey also found that the LDP's support rating has increased to 26%, up from 22% in March. The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan received support from 6% of respondents, unchanged from March, while Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party) gained 4%, also unchanged.
While the approval rating for the Kishida Cabinet has risen, the survey also revealed significant dissatisfaction with the government's handling of the scandal. 78% of respondents disapproved of Kishida's handling of the issue, down from 81% in March, while 16% approved, up from 13%.
Additionally, 67% of respondents said they were dissatisfied with the LDP's punishment against the 39 lawmakers, compared with 24% who said they were satisfied. Notably, the LDP did not take any disciplinary action against Kishida, the party president. 66% of respondents said they were dissatisfied with this inaction, compared with 24% who said they were satisfied.
The survey also found that an overwhelming 92% of respondents believe the truth about the scandal has not been determined, while only 5% believe it has been revealed.
In other news, the survey found that 44% of respondents approved of the recent Japan-U.S. summit, slightly more than the 39% who disapproved.
Finally, when asked who they thought would be the right person for prime minister now, voters were most likely to choose former LDP Secretary-General Shigeru Ishiba, with 19% of respondents preferring him. He was followed by former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi with 14%, and Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Taro Kono, minister for digital transformation, tied for third with 8%. The largest bloc of voters, 33%, chose "there is no such person on the list.