Japan’s Sansate Party wins a major victory with “Japan’s first” push and anti-immigrant rhetoric.
Japan’s far-right Sansate Party has emerged as a major winner in the national Senate elections, riding a wave of nationalist rhetoric on tax cuts and social welfare, anti-immigration warnings and populist pledges.
Viewed as a fringe movement born on YouTube during the Covid-19 pandemic, Sansate was projected on Sunday by national broadcaster NHK to secure up to 22 seats in the 248-member Chamber of Commerce, expanding its presence beyond the single seat held previously.
The party, which holds only three seats in the stronger House, has invaded the political mainstream by taking advantage of voters’ complaints about the decline in the economy and rising costs of living.
Sohei Kamiya, a 47-year-old former English teacher and supermarket manager, Sanseito leader, is at the forefront of this shift. He stirs up controversy with conspiracy theories about vaccines and “globalist elites” and openly believes President Donald Trump’s “bold political style” as inspiration.
According to an exit poll by local media, Japan’s governing coalition is likely to lose a majority in the Senate, which is expected to secure between 32 and 51 seats.
“Japan’s first movement”
In an interview with Nippon Television after the election, Kamiya defended his “Japan’s first” slogan.
“The phrase was intended to reconstruct the livelihoods of Japanese people by resisting globalism. Rather than saying that foreigners should be banned entirely, it’s not that all foreigners should be out of Japan,” he said.
Despite denials of xenophobia, Sansate built its platform for fear of “silent invasions” by immigrants. Political analysts said the message resonated with Japanese voters who weaken the yen, facing a stagnant economy, which has fueled a record number of tourists and inflation.
Japan’s foreign residents last year were a record 3.8 million, only about 3% of the population, but there are concerns about immigration, if not dominant.
In a pre-election NHK vote, only 7% of respondents cited immigration as their main concern. Much more voters have expressed concern about lower birth rates and rising food prices, particularly the rice, which has doubled its costs over the past year.
“It comes from the topics around Sansate, especially here in the United States, its populist and anti-foreign messages. But it is also a reflection of the LDP. [Liberal Democratic Party] Debilitating,” said Joshua Walker of the US-based Japan Association.
Still, right-wing populism remains a relatively new phenomenon in Japan. While Kamiya and his party compare themselves to other far-right European groups, such as the German AFD and the reformed Britain, these ideologies have yet to gain the same level of traction as the West.
