TOKYO: The approval rate for Japanese Prime Minister KISHIDA Fumio’s cabinet dropped to 21.3 percent in November, marking a new record low for the administration, launched in October 2021, a Jiji Press survey showed Thursday.

The figure was also the lowest for an administration led by the Liberal Democratic Party since the party’s return to power in December 2012.

The support rate fell 5.0 percentage points from the previous month, while the disapproval rate rose 7.0 points to 53.3 percent, the highest figure for the Kishida cabinet.

The public support rate stood below the key threshold of 30 percent for the fourth straight month, signaling that the administration may be in the “danger zone.”

Support for the LDP fell 1.9 points to 19.1 percent, a further decline from last month’s survey, when the support rate was the lowest since the party retook control of the Japanese government.

The decline in public support is likely due to dissatisfaction over the government’s fixed-amount tax cuts, which were included in a comprehensive economic package approved earlier this month, as well as resignations of LDP members occupying key positions within ministries.

In the survey, 2,000 people aged 18 and older were interviewed nationwide over four days through Monday. Of them, 57.2 percent gave valid responses.

JIJI Press