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Voters wooed on eve of Japan poll Japanese voters set for key poll
(about 11 hours later)
Candidates across Japan have made their last pitches to voters ahead of Sunday's election, which is expected to herald a rare change of power. Voters are set to go to the polls in Japan in a hotly-contested election which could see a rare change of power.
Most polls suggest the ruling LDP will lose to the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), amid disaffection about the recession and high unemployment. Opinion polls predict victory for the Democratic Party of Japan after more than 50 years of almost unbroken rule by the Liberal Democratic Party.
The Liberal Democratic Party has ruled for more than 50 years, with just one single break of less than one year. Japan is suffering record unemployment and its economy is struggling to emerge from a bruising recession.
DPJ leader Yukio Hatoyama said that this election could change history. Turnout is expected to be high and about 10% of eligible voters cast early ballots on Saturday.
I beg you to give power to the LDP so we can complete the recovery Taro Aso, Japan's Prime Minister class="" href="/2/hi/asia-pacific/8204994.stm">New tricks as election looms class="" href="/2/hi/asia-pacific/8168838.stm">Profile: Yukio Hatoyama class="" href="/2/hi/asia-pacific/6992661.stm">Profile: Taro Aso The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) of Prime Minister Taro Aso has governed Japan for all but 11 months since 1955, but analysts say it is now widely blamed by voters for Japan's economic malaise.
"At last, it is the election tomorrow, one that we will be able to tell the next generation changed Japanese history," Mr Hatoyama told crowds in Sakai in the west of Japan. As campaigning drew to a close, Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) leader Yukio Hatoyama said the election could be historic.
I strongly feel that people will vote for DPJ out of necessity because there's been too much negative press for Taro Aso Kikuchi Daijiro, 20, college student, Oita Japan election: Voters' views New tricks as election looms Profile: Yukio Hatoyama Profile: Taro Aso
"At last, it is the election tomorrow, one that we will be able to tell the next generation changed Japanese history," he told crowds in Sakai in the west of Japan on Saturday.
The DPJ wants to shift the focus of government from supporting corporations to helping consumers and workers - challenging the status quo that has existed since the end of World War II.The DPJ wants to shift the focus of government from supporting corporations to helping consumers and workers - challenging the status quo that has existed since the end of World War II.
'Experienced' But Mr Aso questioned whether the opposition had enough experience to govern.
But Taro Aso, the prime minister and leader of the LDP, questioned if the opposition, with little experience of power, could really run the country. "Can you trust these people? It's a problem if you feel uneasy whether they can really run this country," he told a rally outside Tokyo.
"I beg you to give power to the LDP so we can complete the recovery," he told a rally in Tokyo. Several media polls have predicted that the DPJ will win more than 300 seats in the 480-seat lower house of parliament, reversing the election result of 2005.
The opposition leader has told voters that this election could change history Election campaigning ended with rallies in the capital, Tokyo
In Oyama, north of Tokyo, he added: "Can you trust these people? It's a problem if you feel uneasy whether they can really run this country." The DPJ already controls Japan's upper house with the support of smaller parties including the Social Democrats.
Many voters are likely to use the election to voice their frustration with the government's handling of the economy during the global recession. Correspondents say voters' desire for change after so many years under the LDP could be a crucial factor.
Figures released on Friday showed that the jobless rate was at a record high of 5.7% last month. In July, 3,590,000 Japanese were out of work, over a million more than a year ago. Tokyo University political science professor Takashi Mikuriya told Japanese media that the election "is more about emotions than policies".
While its economy grew by 0.9% between April and June, the latest unemployment figures cast doubt on the strength of the recovery. "Most voters are making the decision not about policies but about whether they are fed up with the ruling party," he said.
Eager for change? Polls open at 0700 on Sunday (2200 GMT Saturday) and close at 2000 (1100 GMT).
Turnout is expected to be high, with roughly 10% of the country's eligible voters expected to cast early ballots.
Some voters simply want to ring the changes after almost a half century of LDP rule.
"The government now is just not effective. I am not sure if the Democratic Party is good or bad, for now I just want change," Kotaro Kobayashi, a 75-year-old in Tokyo, told the Reuters news agency.
In fact, one analyst argued, few voters are paying close attention to the rival parties' policies.
"The election is more about emotions than policies," said Takashi Mikuriya, a professor of political science at Tokyo University.
"Most voters are making the decision not about policies but about whether they are fed up with the ruling party."