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August 11, 2026
 

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KOMEITO

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a joint meeting of committees from both houses of Parliament on fundamental national policies in Tokyo on July 15.
EDITORIALS
Jul 24, 2026
To succeed, the prime minister must get back to basics
The ruling coalition does not have the communication channels and coordination mechanisms that facilitate cooperation and success.
The Centrist Reform Alliance was formed by House of Representatives lawmakers from the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and Komeito
JAPAN
Jul 22, 2026
More CDP prefectural chapters oppose merger into CRA
In a survey of senior prefectural chapter officials earlier in July, 15 chapters expressed opposition, outnumbering the seven that showed support, while 25 chapters did not answer.
Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa says a difference of opinion on the royals bill among three opposition parties won't have a large impact on ongoing merger talks between them.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 16, 2026
CDP and CRA¡¯s opposing stances on imperial family bills cloud prospect for merger
The CDP opposes a clause that allows future male offspring of newly reinstated members of the imperial family to become heirs.
Three major opposition parties are hoping to finalize a three-way merger by this fall.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 2, 2026
Opposition parties CRA, CDP and Komeito discuss merger
The three parties agreed that they should establish a new political structure ahead of the fall session of parliament.
Masayo Tanabu, secretary-general of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and a senior Upper House lawmaker, speaks during an interview with The Japan Times in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 1, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½ opposition faces a make-or-break choice over wider integration
The Centrist Reform Alliance has yet to fully convince the public of its significance, said senior opposition lawmaker Masayo Tanabu.
Debate on constitutional revision is intensifying in commissions on the Constitution in both chambers of the Diet, Japan's parliament, during the ongoing special session.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 24, 2026
Constitutional debates intensify in Japan parliament over emergency clause
Lower House lawmakers have been debating an emergency clause that would allow legislators¡¯ terms to be extended in the event of a disaster or crisis.
Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa during a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN
Jun 13, 2026
Komeito aims to merge with CRA before next parliamentary session
Informed sources say the party plans to declare its plan to join the CRA in July and formally approve the move at a party convention by September.
Junya Ogawa, leader of the Centrist Reform Alliance, attends a news conference on Friday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
May 31, 2026
Three Japanese opposition parties explore new alliance
With the current Diet session slated to end July 17, the three parties hope to confirm such plans by mid-July, according to sources.
Former co-leader of the Centrist Reform Alliance Yoshihiko Noda speaks during an interview at the Diet building in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Apr 22, 2026
Some in LDP were positive about formation of CRA, says Noda
The former CRA co-leader says several moderate conservative members of the LDP were approached for cooperation to realize a broad political realignment.
Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa speaks during a news conference in the parliamentary building on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 15, 2026
Where will the Centrist Reform Alliance¡¯s soul-searching take it?
The party¡¯s internal study has confirmed what many political observers had already concluded ¡ª the attempt to fuse the CDP and Komeito faced structural flaws from the start.
Opposition parties are demanding Cabinet approval for exports of highly lethal weapons and for first-time projects.
JAPAN
Apr 13, 2026
Opposition calls for prior notification to parliament over arms exports
The opposition parties also demand Cabinet approval for exports of highly lethal weapons and for first-time projects.
Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa speaks during an interview at the Diet building on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 3, 2026
CRA leader Ogawa calls for full merger with CDP and Komeito
¡°Prolonged stagnation ... could sink them together,¡± Junya Ogawa said, referring to the three Japanese opposition parties.
Members of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan attend its regular party convention on Sunday in Tokyo.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2026
CDP stops short of specifying when to merge into CRA
A draft of the CDP¡¯s campaign policy had included a plan to make the decision in June 2027, after unified local elections earlier that year.
Komeito leader Toshiko Takeya shake hands with Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa (right) and Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan chief Shunichi Mizuoka during a Komeito party convention in Tokyo on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 15, 2026
Komeito chief open to full integration with Centrist Reform Alliance
The CRA currently comprises only lawmakers of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of parliament.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi discusses tax reduction at a national council in Tokyo on Feb. 26.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 10, 2026
CRA might join national council on consumption tax cut after all
Like the Democratic Party for the People, the party fears the political cost of not taking part in talks over the proposed consumption tax cut for food items.
Junya Ogawa, who heads the Centrist Reform Alliance, speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 19, 2026
CRA not a brake for LDP-JIP, but ¡®an entirely separate vehicle¡¯
Newly elected chief Junya Ogawa continues to tout the main opposition party as an alternative to the ruling coalition despite its recent setback at the ballot box.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a Liberal Democratic Party executive meeting at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Tuesday.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 18, 2026
Time for Takaichi to tackle Â鶹´«Ã½ political taboos
How Takaichi spends her political capital will define her prime ministership, and she may very well be in a position to finally tackle some unresolved voting issues.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in Tokyo on Feb. 9
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 16, 2026
LDP retains high approval rating post election, Nikkei poll shows
While the Liberal Democratic Party¡¯s high approval ratings continued after its Feb. 8 election win, support for the Democratic Party for the People and Sanseito stayed sluggish.
Newly elected Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 13, 2026
Junya Ogawa elected leader of Centrist Reform Alliance
The former CDP lawmaker pledged to strengthen the CRA¡¯s internal structure as the party reels from its election defeat.
Nobuyasu Nikai, the Liberal Democratic Party's candidate for the October 2024 Lower House election, shakes hands with supporters in Tanabe, Wakayama Prefecture.
JAPAN / Politics / First person
Feb 13, 2026
Looking at politics from a different perspective
Three campaigns in 15 months showed how fragile support can be ¡ª and how national power begins far from Tokyo.
America¡¯s cyberforces grapple with cluster of deaths by suicide
The U.S. Cyber Command building (center) stands on the National Security Agency campus at Fort Meade, Maryland.
Many Indonesians named after Japanese anime characters
Some people in Indonesia are named Doraemon, the name of a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title.
Yasukuni Shrine introduces ban on military attire and cosplay
People gather in front of thousands of lanterns on display at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on July 15 during the Mitama Matsuri, one of the capital's largest summer o-Bon festivals.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
As Â鶹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo's Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
At Smoke Craft, a craft beer brewery in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, music isn't just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it's an ingredient.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
J. League enters new era as league kicks off first fall-spring campaign
Players from each J. League club pose during a kickoff event on Monday ahead of the start of the 2026-27 campaign.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

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