Voters cast their ballots in Osaka on Sunday morning.

Voting under way in general election with DPJ favored to end LDP rule

Sunday 30th August, 11:40 AM JST

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ptolemy at 07:14 PM JST - 30th August

Jesus H. Christ, paint me green and call me "Gumby", I agree with Nigelboy too. Never thought this moment would happen. What is my coffee?
rajakumar at 07:16 PM JST - 30th August

Next PM of Japan may be Hatoyama, looks like he is has got bigger hold of Japan.

Aso hold is slipping,as can be heard many times of JT.

Mccain lost because of power of internet,looks like all future leaders of world may lose via sway of net citizens.
rajakumar at 07:19 PM JST - 30th August

correction- Next PM of Japan,may be Hatoyama,looks like he has got bigger hold of Japan.
shufu at 07:25 PM JST - 30th August

Sarge - i totally agree ... but im in ♥ with Aso though anyways so probably not the most impartial opinion.
Youdontknow at 07:32 PM JST - 30th August

Personally I'll be glad to see the back of the LDP! I'd rather have the useless talento from NHK run the country than these money grabbing ignoramuses anymore!
Simon_Foston at 07:37 PM JST - 30th August

Honestly, how can we trust Hatoyama to lead Japan when he doesn't even know when to get a haircut?

With all due respect and without wanting to sound like I'm telling you what or what not to say, if you can't say anything more substantial or informed than that I really wish you wouldn't bother. If it was an attempt at humour, you might have noticed that no one thought it was funny enough to comment on the first time you said it, so repeating yourself is a bit pointless. But seeing as we're on the topic, would you say the same thing about your hero Dubya's great pal Koizumi? He kind of needed a haircut too, but unlike the half-wits who succeeded him, specifically Abe and Aso, he knew a thing or two about winning elections.
Sarge at 07:50 PM JST - 30th August

Simon - Check out the first post on ths thread ( it's mine ).
bcbrownboy at 07:56 PM JST - 30th August

Yep, frying pan into the fire syndrome
polarmalik at 09:41 PM JST - 30th August

Congratulations in advance Mr Yukio Hatoyama for becoming the new Prime Minister of Japan - Farakh Malik
Simon_Foston at 09:42 PM JST - 30th August

Sarge said,

Simon - Check out the first post on ths thread ( it's mine ).

I thought you might have noticed that I replied to it in my first post on this thread. You obviously had nothing to say about that and you didn't answer the question in my second post about haircuts. Nevetheless, judging by the way the exit polls are going, it looks as if hairdos are the last thing on people's minds.

Moderator: Forget about hairdos, please.
Sarge at 10:11 PM JST - 30th August

"The DPJ would seek more independence from the United States"

What, Japan is actually going to take full responsibility for its defense? About time!

Heck, except for Yoshinoya and Yanase they've already got near complete independence from U.S. beef and cars.
MASSWIPE at 10:29 PM JST - 30th August

"Yeah, and now they're useless. What's your point exactly?"

That we shouldn't forget how effective the LDP was before it became "useless". Voters in a lot of countries (especially the US&UK) tend to be ingrates who "throw the bums out" the moment they stop delivering the goods. Japanese voters, to the immense frustration of a lot of people, were willing to stick with the LDP way past the expiration date. Why? I don't know. Perhaps because they remembered the incredibly good times in Japan from 1960-90 and believed that ONLY the LDP could return Japan to that kind of glory.
Simon_Foston at 10:55 PM JST - 30th August

"Yeah, and now they're useless. What's your point exactly?"

That we shouldn't forget how effective the LDP was before it became "useless". Voters in a lot of countries (especially the US&UK) tend to be ingrates who "throw the bums out" the moment they stop delivering the goods. Japanese voters, to the immense frustration of a lot of people, were willing to stick with the LDP way past the expiration date. Why? I don't know. Perhaps because they remembered the incredibly good times in Japan from 1960-90 and believed that ONLY the LDP could return Japan to that kind of glory.

First, the LDP became useless 20-30 years ago. Second, if you had something in your kitchen that was way past its expiration date, would you eat it? Basically, I think that anyone who thought that only the LDP could return Japan to its pre-1990 glory has realised their mistake, and voted accordingly.
UnagiDon at 11:01 PM JST - 30th August

I think that anyone who thought that only the LDP could return Japan to its pre-1990 glory has realised their mistake, and voted accordingly

Well said - the LDP needs several years in the political wilderness to reform itself before it gets back any credibility, esp if the DPJ can smash the power of the bureaucracy.
Simon_Foston at 11:56 PM JST - 30th August

Well said - the LDP needs several years in the political wilderness to reform itself before it gets back any credibility, esp if the DPJ can smash the power of the bureaucracy.

Right. Every healthy political party needs at least one period in opposition to stay competitive. The LDP are long overdue theirs, but it's starting today.