Japan's Abe hails landslide victory in snap election

Tokyo (CNN)A decision by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to call a snap election appears to have paid off.

Abe's ruling coalition has won a clear majority with more than two-thirds of Parliament's 465 seats, with the Liberal Democratic Party holding a majority even without its coalition partner, the Komeito party, he told reporters Monday.

"We were able to earn the powerful support of the Japanese people, well surpassing our goal," Abe said at a press conference after Sunday's vote.

The win puts him on course to be post-war Japan's longest-ever serving prime minister, and Abe is expected to use his new mandate to push for overhauls to the country's defense strategy and pacifist stance.

"My immediate task is to deal with North Korea," Abe told reporters late Sunday. "It will take tough diplomacy. With the mandate given by the people, I would like to exercise my command in diplomacy."

US President Donald Trump called Abe to congratulate him Sunday night, the Japanese Prime Minister's office told CNN. During the call, the two leaders spoke of being united on the need to increase pressure on North Korea, an official said.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe delivers a speech in Tokyo on Saturday night ahead of election day.

An exit poll by public broadcaster NHK forecast a decisive win for Abe's coalition, saying his conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) would take 253 to 300 of Parliament's 465 seats. The Komeito party is predicted to take 27 to 36 seats.

Official results are still to be released after Typhoon Lan prevented some people from voting in parts of the country, particularly those on outlying islands. However, their votes aren't expected to change the outcome.

In the face of an increasingly hostile North Korea, Abe earlier this year set a deadline of 2020 to revise Japan's constitution, which contains language that bans Japan from maintaining armed forces. It is a controversial proposal that strikes at the heart of the country's post-war identity.

The forecast win also puts Abe, 63, on track to become the longest-serving leader in the country's modern history. His performance at the polls Sunday is an indication his party is likely to re-elect him as their leader for another three years.

"I must face with this victory with humility," Abe told NHK after the exit poll results. "The voters gave us, the ruling party, a majority. This is the voice of the Japanese people, telling us to push our policies forward and come out with results."

Japanese election officials in Tokyo count ballot papers for the vote on Sunday.

Opposition in disarray

Abe had sought to win a two-thirds "super majority" in Parliament, which would help him achieve his goal of amending the constitution.

He would need 310 seats to achieve that balance of power, and while some exit polls show Abe passing that threshold, others do not.

Abe called the election at a key moment when the opposition was in disarray, and his popularity ratings began to pick up after months in the doldrums.

He ran with very little opposition. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike launched her conservative Party of Hope ahead of the poll, splintering the traditional opposition.

But Koike did not herself run for a seat in Parliament and her party failed to put forward a viable candidate. Koike was in Paris during the vote Sunday on a scheduled official trip.

"It is a very tough result. We will analyze the reason for the defeat," she told NHK.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike on Sunday in Paris.

North Korea threat

Japan has faced increased hostility from North Korea in recent months, as the rogue state locks horns with the Trump administration over Pyongyang's missile and nuclear programs.

Pyongyang flew two projectiles over Japan last month, including a ballistic missile, in act of defiance against Washington and the international community.

But Japan's ability to respond is limited. Its constitution does not allow Japan's military -- called the Self-Defense Forces -- to develop significant offensive capabilities. Article 9 of the constitution says that "land, sea and air forces, as well as other war potential will never be maintained."

Neighbors that suffered under Japanese occupation during World War II view Abe's ambitions with concern and skepticism. It's also highly controversial in Japan itself, to the point where lawmakers came to blows debating the issue in 2015.

But altering Japan's constitution is a heavy lift. Even with strong parliamentary support, such a measure must be approved in a referendum.

The Trump factor

US preparing for North Korea's 'final step'

One of the first items on Abe's agenda will be US President Donald Trump's first trip to Asia while in office early next month.

Trump's talk of turning inward has had US allies in the region worried that they can no longer rely on the US for defense as they once did. Some Japanese hawks have pointed to this as yet another impetus to revise the constitution.

Abe has invested significant time and effort into his relationship with his new US counterpart, becoming the first foreign leader to meet with Trump when he was President-elect and during a summit in February at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, where the two played golf together.

Today, the two are bound by their shared hard line on Pyongyang -- both have been vociferous in their opposition to North Korea's missile and nuclear tests.

CNN's Yoko Wakatsuki reported from Tokyo and Joshua Berlinger reported from Hong Kong. Angela Dewan wrote from London.

News Courtesy: www.cnn.com