Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi dissolved Japan’s House of Representatives in January 2026, triggering a February 8 snap election that delivered the Liberal Democratic Party a record postwar majority and a stable coalition with the Japan Innovation Party. The newly seated lower house began a standard four-year term, with the next scheduled general election expected around 2030. As of mid-September 2026, Takaichi’s cabinet maintains approval ratings above 60 percent, the opposition Centrist Reform Alliance has fragmented, and an extraordinary Diet session is set for October 5 to address tax cuts and seat reductions rather than trigger new elections. Traders see these factors as creating strong institutional and political stability that makes another dissolution before year-end unlikely absent major unforeseen shocks such as a sharp approval collapse, coalition fracture, or acute economic crisis.