Ishiba says will stay as Japan PM despite election setback

The loss of majority in the upper house puts pressure on the embattled leader who also lost control of the more powerful lower house in Oct last year

- Agencies

Japan's ruling coalition looked set to lose its majority in the upper house, according to exit polls, an outcome that would further weaken embattled Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s leadership and potentially unsettle markets.

A poll by public broadcaster NHK showed that the ruling coalition is set to secure about 32-51 seats of the 125 up for grabs in Sunday’s election, likely leaving it short of the 50 needed to maintain a majority in the 248-member chamber. The Asahi newspaper estimated that Ishiba’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior coalition partner Komeito would win 41 seats combined. Nikkei said the bloc is expected to lose a significant number of seats, without giving an estimate.

The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party is projected to win 18 to 30 seats, from 22 held previously, NHK’s exit poll showed.