Reposted by Kyung-Gu LeeIkuma Ogura @ikumaogura.bsky.social · 05/07/2026JSQPS 2026 Summer Meeting (July 4-5, 2026@Hitotsubashi University) I want to thank everyone who attended the meeting and helped me organize it! 041 0
Reposted by Kyung-Gu LeeJapanese Journal of Political Science @jjps.bsky.social · 30/06/2026#OpenAccess - Strategic oversupply: minor parties and contamination effects in Japan’s mixed-member majoritarian elections - cup.org/4epw7Vc - @kglee98.bsky.social #FirstView #jjps 021 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 20/06/2026Implication: MMM systems aren't always the "best of both worlds" combining proportionality + accountability; they can produce neither, when minor parties face a collective action problem while a ruling coalition (e.g. LDP-Komeito) exploits it for disproportionate gains. 010 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 20/06/2026This suggests Japan's mixed system incentivizes parties to run non-viable district candidates just to gain PR votes (while effectiveness varies by candidate). This may help explain opposition fragmentation, which often fails to coordinate due to collective action problems. 110 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 20/06/2026I also show candidates with "credentials"—prior political experience or notable careers (bureaucrat, lawyer, doctor, business exec)—tend to produce a higher contamination effect. 100 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 20/06/2026Using data from Lower and Upper House elections (2013–2025), I find minor parties' PR vote share increased in districts where they ran a district candidate (even after controlling for endogeneity through weighting). 100 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 20/06/2026My paper is now published open access at @jjps.bsky.social I test whether there's a contamination effect between the District tier (SMD/MMD) and PR tier in Japan's Mixed-Member Majoritarian(MMM) electoral system, which is one of the ongoing debates in the fields. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...cambridge.orgStrategic oversupply: minor parties and contamination effects in Japan’s mixed-member majoritarian elections | Japanese Journal of Political Science | Cambridge CoreStrategic oversupply: minor parties and contamination effects in Japan’s mixed-member majoritarian elections 111 0
Reposted by Kyung-Gu LeeJapanese Journal of Political Science @jjps.bsky.social · 16/06/2026#OpenAccess - Strategic oversupply: minor parties and contamination effects in Japan’s mixed-member majoritarian elections - cup.org/4epw7Vc - @kglee98.bsky.social #FirstView #jjps 022 0
Reposted by Kyung-Gu LeePacific Affairs @pacificaffairs.bsky.social · 17/02/2026Why did the LDP lose the 2025 House of Councillors election... & what comes next for Japanese politics? New Perspectives piece in @pacificaffairs.bsky.social by @kglee98.bsky.social traces the causes and consequences of the snap House of Representatives election. Read it in our forthcoming issue! 021 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 28/02/2026(6/6)In navigating these turbulent developments, I hope this piece contributes meaningfully to ongoing debates about Japan’s evolving party system and political future. 010 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 28/02/2026(5/6)What lies ahead for Japanese politics? Since late 2023, the political fortunes of parties and politicians have resembled a roller coaster. While LDP dominance appears to be back in play, it is far from certain that the current configuration represents a stable endpoint. 100 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 28/02/2026(4/6)However, the Upper House has veto powers over key appointments. Moreover, constitutional revision requires 2/3 support in both houses before a referendum. Also, repeated overrides on controversial legislation could provoke public backlash, making multiparty dynamics of the Upper House relevant. 100 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 28/02/2026(3/6)And when the article was accepted, PM Takaichi called a snap election for the Lower House that ended with an LDP landslide victory. Now that the LDP holds a 2/3 majority in the Lower House which is sufficient to override an Upper House veto, it may appear that my article has lost its relevance. 100 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 28/02/2026(2/6)The timing of the publication could hardly have been worse. The day after I drafted the initial version, former PM Ishiba announced his resignation. By the time I resubmitted the manuscript, the LDP–Komeito coalition had shifted to an LDP–JIP (Japan Innovation Party) coalition. 100 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 28/02/2026(1/6)The paper examines the causes of the LDP’s electoral losses, explores the rise of populist parties such as Sanseito, and analyzes the political changes triggered by the election, including a PM change, coalition reshuffling, and ends with implications for inter-party dynamics. 100 0
Kyung-Gu Lee @kglee98.bsky.social · 28/02/2026My paper on Japan’s Upper House election last July has been published Open Access in @pacificaffairs.bsky.social. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....tandfonline.comThe Mountain Is Moving, but Where To? Japan's 2025 Upper House Election and the Future of Japanese PoliticsThis perspective analyzes the 2025 House of Councillors election in Japan, which ended the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)–Komeito coalition's majority in both houses of the Diet. While not producin... 100 0
