A recent July public opinion poll by Jiji Press, conducted from July 11–14, shows that support for Prime Minister Ishiba’s Cabinet has dropped to a new low of 20.8%, down 6.2 points from the previous month. This is the lowest approval rating since the Cabinet was formed in October last year. Meanwhile, the disapproval rate rose to 55.0%, also the highest so far.

In June, the approval rating had briefly risen to 27.0%, likely due to Shinjiro Koizumi’s appointment as Agriculture Minister, but it has now returned to near its previous low in May (20.9%).

Reasons for support (multiple answers allowed):

• “No better alternative” – 8.9%
• “Trust the prime minister” – 5.2%
• “Support the ruling party” – 3.3%

Reasons for disapproval:

• “No expectations” – 29.7%
• “Lack of leadership” – 21.9%
• “Poor policies” – 21.6%

Party support rates:

• Liberal Democratic Party (LDP): 16.4% (down 2.5 points)
• Constitutional Democratic Party: 5.5% (up 1.1 points)
• Sanseito: 4.7% (up 2.2 points, now ranked 3rd)
• Democratic Party for the People & Komeito: 3.1% each
• Reiwa Shinsengumi: 2.1%
• Japanese Communist Party: 1.6%
• Nippon Ishin: 1.5%
• Japan Conservative Party: 1.1%
• Social Democratic Party: 0.3%
• No party support: 54.9%

The survey was conducted face-to-face with 2,000 people aged 18 and over nationwide. The valid response rate was 59.0%.