Report
TOE Alert: Teflon Abe; the Curse of One-Party Democracy
posted by Richard Katz on March 02, 2016
Report Cover
Headline
We have been correct in our expectation that Abenomics would fail to deliver on its promises and that it was only a matter of time before the public became disenchanted with it.
Abstract
Key points: - As we expected, public disenchantment has grown as Abenomics failed to deliver on its promises; in a new Nikkei poll, 50% of respondents said they were dissatisfied - However, we were wrong in our expectation that disenchantment with Abenomics would propel a steady erosion of Abe’s overall approval ratings; over the last year, approval has stabilized at around 40-50%, a high level for a PM with Abe’s tenure - There is growing expectation that Abe will call—and win—a double-election this summer of both Upper and Lower House; Abe will not, however, secure a two-thirds majority in both Houses needed to revise the Constitution