Episode 4: The Return of Strongman Politics and the Collapse of Factional Political Ecology
Series: The Rise and Fall of LDP Factional Politics
After entering the 21st century, Junichiro Koizumi's whirlwind of 'theater politics' objectively weakened the influence of traditional factions within the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). With the party leader at the core and the party's power growing, the factions' monopoly on the party's political ecology was broken. After the interlude of the Democratic Party, Shinzo Abe, who returned to power, began to consolidate his long-term rule by cooperating with major factions and expanding the Abe faction. However, this was accompanied by the resurgence of the accumulated ills of LDP factions, leading to a backlash. While LDP factional politics may gradually fade in form, the struggle for power will ultimately continue on the stage of Nagatacho in a different guise.