TOKYO--Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling coalition won a landslide victory on Sunday in an election for parliament's upper house, despite concerns about his economic policies and plans to revise the nation's post-war pacifist constitution for the first time.
Final counts showed Abe's coalition, like-minded parties and independents had won the two-thirds "super majority" needed to try to revise the constitution's restraints on the military, a step that could strain ties with China, where memories of Japan's past militarism run deep.
Abe's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) fell one short of winning a simple majority, which would have increased its clout within the coalition. Earlier projections had shown it was within their grasp for the first time since 1989.
Nevertheless, the overall victory will still bolster Abe's grip over the conservative party that he led back to power in 2012 promising to reboot the economy with hyper-easy monetary policy, fiscal spending and reforms. Abe's junior coalition partner, Komeito, fared well, winning 14 seats compared with nine before the election.
Any attempt to revise the constitution will still be politically fraught and LDP heavyweights have suggested that amending the pacifist Article 9 would not be the first priority. Abe told a TV broadcaster it was too early to talk about specific revisions to the constitution and his No.2 in the party said separately that talks with the opposition were needed.
"I have two more years to my term (as LDP president) and this is a goal of the LDP, so I want to address it calmly," Abe said.
In Japan, some financial market players fear trying to amend the constitution could divert Abe's energy away from reviving the stuttering economy. "The key question will be whether he can carry out (economic) structural reforms," said Nobuhiko Kuramochi, chief strategist at Mizuho Securities. "If Abe fails to do so despite the political freedom he has gained, that will be negative for foreign investors' appetite for Japanese stocks."
Some voters who backed Abe's LDP also said the economy's health was their biggest concern. "Especially since I see economic growth as the priority, I have little hope for the opposition parties," said Yoshihiko Takeda, a 36-year-old IT company employee.
Abe had cast the election as a referendum on "Abenomics". With signs the strategy is failing, the government plans to compile a post-election stimulus package that could exceed 10 trillion yen ($99 billion).
Abe declined to say how big the package might be. Economists worry the government will choose big-ticket infrastructure projects rather than implement tough structural reforms.
Abe said he would reshuffle his cabinet but did not say when or how. There has been speculation that Abe might replace Finance Minister Taro Aso, 75, among others.
His minister for Okinawa, Aiko Shimajiri, lost her seat, along with Justice Minister Mitsuhide Iwaki. The loss in Okinawa is a slap at a U.S.-Japan plan to relocate a controversial U.S.-Marines airbase on the island, reluctant host to the bulk of America's military forces in Japan.
Abe said he had won a mandate for his economic policies in the election, although the assertion could be weakened by low turnout. "We were given approval for our mandate to powerfully pursue Abenomics. We'd like to continue with our efforts to achieve what we've promised," he said on TV.
