In a recent scandal involving political fundraising in Japan, former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida chose not to run for re-election as party president due to details of large sums being collected and distributed by Liberal Democratic Party factions becoming known. The scandal also brought attention to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and numerous lawmakers who benefited from fund-raising parties, contributing to a significant public backlash.
The Asahi Shimbun conducted an analysis of political fund reports for 2023, revealing that 19 out of 20 lawmakers who joined Prime Minister Ishiba's Cabinet in November 2024 had no hesitations about hosting fund-raising parties. The revenues from these functions for the 19 ministers totaled 486.76 million yen, with a profit rate of 75 percent, calculated by subtracting the cost of holding the functions from the amount collected.
Notably, the article highlights some of the Cabinet ministers who were major beneficiaries of fund-raising parties, including Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, and others who collected substantial amounts. Moreover, the piece sheds light on concerns raised by Hiroshi Kamiwaki, a constitutional law professor, who advocates for the banning of fund-raising parties, citing the risk of creating slush funds and the potential for selling tickets to individuals who do not attend the events.