Japanese Prime Minister 
Sanae Takaichi's cabinet approval rose to 62% in a Nikkei and TV Tokyo poll conducted from August 28 to 30, up 4 percentage points from July. The result puts approval back above 60% for the first time in two months, while disapproval fell 5 points to 32%. Support among voters with no party affiliation jumped 11 points.
Where did the gains come from? Approval reached 71% both among respondents aged 39 and under and among those in their 40s and 50s, up 4 and 5 points respectively, in a breakdown carried by CNA. Respondents aged 60 and over held steady at 53%. Liberal Democratic Party supporters backed the cabinet at 89% and opposition supporters at 37%, broadly unchanged from the previous month, while independents' approval reached 47%. The rebound follows July, when approval had fallen 10 points from June to 58%.
Why do respondents back or oppose the cabinet? The most common reason for support was that the prime minister's character is trustworthy, at 32%, followed by leadership ability at 29%, CNA reported. Among opponents, 43% cited it being an LDP-centred cabinet and 37% said its policies were poor. Tackling rising prices topped the issues respondents wanted the prime minister to prioritise.
How do voters view the food tax cut? Respondents split 50% to 45% in favour of the government's decision to cut the consumption tax on food to 1% for two years from April 2027 and to make cash payments to low- and middle-income earners that year, CNA reported. Because the consumption tax is a key funding source for social security, 64% said they were uneasy about the cut's possible effect on it, up 7 points from a June survey. Even among those who backed the measures, 51% shared that worry.
What else did the survey find? Support for the LDP slipped 2 points to 39% in the Nikkei survey, while the share backing no party rose 6 points to 27%. The Democratic Party for the People and the Constitutional Democratic Party each held at 5%, and Sanseito fell 2 points to 4%. Nikkei Research polled men and women aged 18 and over nationwide by random-digit-dial telephone, collecting 1,009 valid responses with a margin of error of about 3 points.
Figures referenced: Sanae Takaichi. — JudgeMarket.
