Japan election 2026 result LIVE updates: Exit polls predict big majority for Sanae Takaichi's party, forecast 274 seats

Japan election result live updates: Japanese voters have cast their votes amid heavy snowfall in a snap election called by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, with her ruling coalition expected to secure a clear victory.

Her party is set to secure a big majority in Japan's lower house, public broadcaster NHK forecast, based on exit polls. Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party is set to win 274 to 328 of the 465 seats in the chamber, well above the 233 needed for a majority, according to NHK.

Takaichi announced the nation's first mid-winter election in 36 years to seek a public mandate soon after winning her party's leadership race last October.

The decision was widely seen as a gamble, as her Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) had lost its majority in both houses of parliament and its long-standing coalition with the Komeito party had fallen apart.

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