選挙

Yukio Hatoyama, and the left-of-center Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) swept to a landslide victory in yesterday's general election, ending virtually 50 years of unbroken LDP power and reducing Taro Aso and his party to just over 100 seats in the Japanese Diet.



On a turnout of just under 50%, the DPJ is projected to win over 300 seats in the 480-seat Diet. Prime Minister Taro Aso is reportedly set to resign as head of the LDP to take responsibility for the disastrous result.

62-year-old Hatoyama replaced Ichiro Ozawa as leader of the DPJ earlier this year, after the latter became embroiled in a financing scandal involving political donations from a medium-sized construction company.

Yukio Hatoyama is a graduate of Tokyo University with a PhD from Stanford University in the US.