The LDP Loses One in Gifu

While the capital's media mavens pout and preen about how the messed up finances of the Democratic Party of Japan's president and secretary-general are triggering a collapse of the support for the DPJ in advance of this summer's House of Councillors election, the erosion of the base of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party continues apace. This morning House of Councillors member Matsuda Iwao announced that he had resigned from the LDP, freeing himself and political support group (kōenkai) to campaign on behalf of his former political secretary Komiyama Yoshiharu, who will be running for one of the two Gifu Prefecture district seats as a DPJ candidate.

Matsuda's becoming an independent and his stated wish to campaign hard "in order to promote the cultivation of a new polical force in Gifu" solidies the likely DPJ pick up of a Gifu seat in the House of Councillors. Politically, Gifu should be considered a swing prefecture, with three district seats going to Democrats and two staying with the LDP in 2009. The Gifu House of Councillors delegation , however, was all LDP was similar split, 2 to 2, until this morning . Matsuda's dumping of his party affiliation was no doubt smoothed by his having won his first election to the House of Councillors with DPJ support.

Matsuda is now the fifth sitting member of the LDP's House of Councillors delegation to quit the party since the debacle in last year's House of Representatives election.

For those keeping score at home, the party affiliations in the House of Councillors, after today:

DPJ-led four party caucus 122
LDP-Reform Club 81
New Komeito 22
Communist Party 7
Socialist-Rengo 5
Independents 6

Later - As regards the howling error, the House of Councillors website needs more legible lists...and searchable ones too. Who puts a space in between the two kanji of Gifu?