JAPAN ; SHINZO ABE CRUISES TO REELECTION IN LANDSLIDE VICTORY

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Shinzo Abe
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  • Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe won reelection by a landslide in a snap election this weekend, and his ruling Liberal Democratic Party also claimed a supermajority in parliament. [NYT / Motoko Rich] 
  • Abe is entering his third term, and will become Japan's longest-serving prime minister if he finishes it. [CNN / Yoko Wakatsuki, James Griffiths, and Joshua Berlinger] 
  • He actually isn't all that popular in Japan, having been dogged by corruption scandals that tanked his approval ratings this summer. [The Guardian / Justin McCurry] 
  • But his tenure has been marked by strong economic growth. Already, markets have spiked in response to the news that the country will have stable leadership. [The Diplomat / Anthony Fensom] 
  • There's also not a lot of appetite for a new leader in the face of provocations from North Korea, which Abe has promised to meet with increased pressure after Kim Jong Un's regime launched two missiles over Japan. [BBC] 
  • Abe may use his reelection as a chance to revise Japan's pacifist constitution, which hasn't been amended since the end of World War II. In particular, Abe could potentially get rid of Article 9, the clause that renounces war and says that Japan's army is a self-defense force.

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