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| Japan election: PM Shinzo Abe dissolves parliament | Japan election: PM Shinzo Abe dissolves parliament |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has dissolved the lower house of the parliament ahead of a snap election. | Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has dissolved the lower house of the parliament ahead of a snap election. |
| The poll, announced on Monday and which comes a year early, will take place on 22 October. | The poll, announced on Monday and which comes a year early, will take place on 22 October. |
| Mr Abe is seeking a fresh mandate amid a rebound in his approval ratings and the ongoing North Korea nuclear crisis. | Mr Abe is seeking a fresh mandate amid a rebound in his approval ratings and the ongoing North Korea nuclear crisis. |
| The right-wing hawk became prime minister in 2012, and his Liberal Democrat Party (LDP) leads a ruling coalition that controls the Diet. | The right-wing hawk became prime minister in 2012, and his Liberal Democrat Party (LDP) leads a ruling coalition that controls the Diet. |
| Mr Abe suffered a drop in popularity earlier this year over allegations of cronyism. | Mr Abe suffered a drop in popularity earlier this year over allegations of cronyism. |
| But he's seen fresh support after North Korea fired two ballistic missiles over Japan, which Mr Abe took a strong stance against. | But he's seen fresh support after North Korea fired two ballistic missiles over Japan, which Mr Abe took a strong stance against. |
| His call for a snap election was seen as taking advantage of a weak opposition, and the LDP is still leading in opinion polls. | His call for a snap election was seen as taking advantage of a weak opposition, and the LDP is still leading in opinion polls. |
| But he now faces a new contender in the form of the fledgling conservative Party of Hope, which was only formally unveiled on Wednesday and has already begun attracting some support. | |
| It is led by the popular Yuriko Koike, Tokyo's first female governor and a former television news anchor. | |
| Several lawmakers from the main opposition Democratic Party, which has been struggling, have already defected to the Party of Hope. | |
| On Thursday, the Democratic Party's leader proposed to his members a de facto merger where all their candidates would run under the Party of Hope's banner, in order to present a united challenge to Mr Abe and the LDP. |