Factions in the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
Factions ("habatsu" 派閥) are an accepted part of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) (自由民主党 "Jiyū-Minshutō"), the ruling party of Japan, which began with eight formal factions when it was first formed by merger in 1955. A political faction may be defined as a sub-group within a larger organization. While factions characterize other political parties in Pacific Asia, Japanese factionalism is distinguished by its stability and institutionalization. Although factions reconstitute themselves from time to time, the "habatsu" active today can be traced back to their 1955 roots, a testament to the stability  and institutionalized nature of Liberal Democratic Party factions. Faction leaders offer their followers services without which the followers would find it difficult to survive politically. Leaders provide funds for the day-to-day operation of Diet members' offices and staff as well as financial support during expensive election campaigns. The operating allowances provided by the government are inadequate, even after the introduction of public funding in 1994. The leader also introduces his followers to influential bureaucrats and business people, thus helping faction members respond to their constituents' needs. Hatoyama–Yoshida rivalry (1946–1955). The LDP "habatsu" begin in the precursor parties  and political developments during the Occupation period. Although Ichirō Hatoyama led his Liberal Party to victory in the 1946 Japanese general election (10 April), before he could assume power, he was purged by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers as someone who had too many connections with the militarist past. Hatoyama handed control of the party to Shigeru Yoshida, who promised to hand the reins back when Hatoyama was rehabilitated. Unlike Hatoyama, who came from a family of politicians, Yoshida was a bureaucrat, and packed the party with bureaucrats, giving rise to "kanryo" (bureaucrat) and "tojin" (party man) factions . Hatoyama was depurged on 6 August 1951, only to find Yoshida unwilling to yield control. Thus on 24 November 1954 Hatoyama helped form a new Democratic Party through a merger of a faction of Hatoyama loyalists who defected from Yoshida's party, and the Kaishintō (Reform Party). In 1955, when the Liberal Party (Yoshida) and the Democratic Party (Hatoyama) merged to form the Liberal Democratic Party, each party brought with it four factions, for a total of eight factions in the new party. This begins the "1955 System", namely, decades of LDP domination of Japanese politics. Historical factions. Historically, the  most powerful and aggressive faction leader in the LDP was Kakuei Tanaka, whose Mokuyo Club factions dual-house strength in the early 1980s exceeded 110. His followers remained loyal despite the fact that he had been convicted of receiving ¥500 million (nearly US$4 million) in bribes from Lockheed (the Lockheed scandal) to facilitate the purchase of its passenger aircraft by All Nippon Airways and that he had formally withdrawn from the LDP. Tanaka and his most bitter factional rival, Takeo Fukuda, were a study in contrasts. Tanaka was a roughhewn wheeler-dealer with a primary school education who  had made a fortune in the construction industry; Fukuda was an elite product of the University of Tokyo Law Faculty and a career bureaucrat. In the face of Fukuda's strong opposition, Tanaka engineered the selections of prime ministers Masayoshi Ōhira (1978–80) and Zenkō Suzuki (1980–82). The accession of Yasuhiro Nakasone to the prime ministership in 1982 would also not have occurred without Tanaka's support. As a result, Nakasone, at that time a politically weak figure, was nicknamed "Tanakasone". But Tanaka's faction was dealt a grave blow when one of his subordinates, Noboru Takeshita, decided to form a  breakaway group. The LDP faction system was closely fitted to the House of Representatives' medium-sized, multiple-member election districts. The party usually ran more than one candidate in each of these constituencies to maintain its lower house majority, and these candidates were from different factions. During an election campaign, the LDP, in a real sense, ran not only against the opposition but also against itself. In fact, intraparty competition within one election district was often more bitter than interparty competition, with two or more LDP candidates vying for the same block of conservative votes. For example, in the House  of Representatives election of February 18, 1990, three LDP and three opposition candidates competed for five seats in a southwestern prefecture. Two of the LDP candidates publicly expressed bitterness over the entry of the third, a son of the prefectural governor. Local television showed supporters of one of the LDP candidates cheering loudly when the governor's son was edged out for the fifth seat by a Komeito candidate. List of major historical factions. The LDP's factions can loosely be grouped into two main currents. They developed in the years following the "conservative merger" ("hoshu gōdō") of 1955 when  Shigeru Yoshida's Liberal Party and Ichirō Hatoyama's Japan Democratic Party united to form the LDP. Factions of former Liberals are called "hoshu honryū" ("conservative mainstream") while the factions of former Democrats "hoshu bōryū" ("conservative anti-mainstream"). Present-day factions and leaders (as of April 2022) in bold. Current factions. There are currently five major factions and two minor factions in the LDP; and while most factions have official titles, in the Japanese media they are usually referred to by the names of their current leaders. From most to least powerful, they are: Seiwa Seisaku Kenkyūkai (清和政策研究会, Seiwa Political  Analysis Council). The largest faction of the LDP is currently led by former prime minister Shinzo Abe, replacing ex-Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda on 11 November 2021 who became the new Speaker of the House of Representatives. The faction's founder was Takeo Fukuda in 1962. It is a pro-classical economics, nationalist (it includes many Japanese Neoconservatives) and conservative faction. Shinzo Abe's deceased father Shintaro Abe was an ex-leader of this faction (1986–1991). Ex-Prime Ministers Junichiro Koizumi and Yoshirō Mori also formerly led the faction. As of 2004 it has overtaken the Hashimoto faction in  the more powerful Lower House, and after the 2007 Councilor's election, the Seiwa Political-analysis Council has become the largest faction in the party. Shikōkai (志公会). This faction is the second largest faction, led by Tarō Asō, the former Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister and current LDP Vice-President. It was established in 2017 by merging the following two factions: Ikōkai (為公会). Formerly led by Yōhei Kōno, who was the Speaker of the House of Representatives from 2003 to 2009. Once part of the former Katō faction, though this group split off during the mid-1990s. It is more  critical to Koizumi and more reformist and pro-Chinese than the Machimura faction’s classical economics conservative nationalists. It is now known as the Former Kono Faction because the resignation of the faction chief and the inability of the faction to decide on a new leader. Banchō Seisaku Kenkyūjo (番町政策研究所). Formerly led by Masahiko Komura. 'Banchō Seisaku Kenkyūjo' and 'Ikōkai' are close. As Komura retired, leadership was handed to Tadamori Ōshima before he took the role of House of Representatives Speaker in 2015. In turn, his replacement, Akiko Santō became the first ever female faction head. However, with few faction  members, Santo was unable to exercise a great deal of influence over intra-party affairs, so she decided to join forces by merging hers with Aso's faction in 2017. Notable members of the Shikōkai faction are Taro Kono, the 2021 LDP leadership candidate and son of Yōhei Kōno, and Akira Amari, former LDP secretary general (who currently holds a proportional block seat after losing in his own constituency in the 2021 election). Heisei Kenkyūkai (平成研究会, Heisei Research Council). The third largest faction is led by current LDP Secretary General Toshimitsu Motegi, following the death of Wataru Takeshita who was  chairman from 2018 until his death in September 2021. Takeshita previously replaced Fukushiro Nukaga who had served as chairman since September 2009. Previous leaders also included ex-PM Ryutaro Hashimoto, and previously the faction was known as the Takeshita Faction, of former prime minister Noboru Takeshita (the recently deceased faction head, Wataru Takeshita is his younger brother). It is a Keynesian, right-liberal and pro-China faction. It has strong influence on bureaucrats. Ex-PM Hashimoto and the entire faction were hit with a scandal where the faction had apparently taken money from the Japan Dental Association. Hashimoto resigned as  chairman of the faction in 2004 and retired from politics the following year. Possible replacements included Kosuke Hori, Fumio Kyuma, Takao Fujii, and Fukushiro Nukaga. Since the leadership of Junichiro Koizumi, it was split with members who supported Koizumi and a minority of the faction who did not. It was also observed that leaders of this faction were unable to maintain factional unity, particularly during the LDP presidential election of 2018. Because it was the largest in numbers, the accusation of influence peddling and pork-barrel politics is rife. It is a descendant of the Tanaka faction. Kōchikai (宏池会). Since  2012, the faction has been led by Fumio Kishida, the current LDP leader and Prime Minister. Mitsuo Horiuchi was co-leader until he temporarily left the faction in October 2006. This group was under the leadership of Koichi Kato until a split in 2001, after Kato led a failed revolt against the prime minister Yoshirō Mori which backfired and damaged his grip over the faction. It is moderate on internal and foreign affairs but more conservative and critical to Mr. Koizumi but still moderately nationalist, and more successful than the section led by Kato. This faction historically has been the  most prestigious faction, with many of its members drawn from the upper-ranks of the elite bureaucracy. Shisuikai (志帥会). Currently led by Toshihiro Nikai who stepped down as LDP Secretary General in 2021. It is considered by many to be the most right-wing grouping among the major factions, though it is Keynesian and Right liberal in general and pro-International cooperation. This faction has effectively been weakened since Shizuka Kamei and other members left the party to establish the People's New Party in opposition to Koizumi's postal privatisation bills. Kinmirai Seiji Kenkyūkai (近未来政治研究会). Formerly led by Nobuteru  Ishihara until he lost his seat in the 2021 general election. Currently, the faction has no leader and has been diminished as of the 2021 election, leaving the fate of the faction as unknown. 'Kinmirai Seiji Kenkyūkai' and 'Shisuikai' are close. Ishihara was unsuccessful in expanding the faction’s membership. As he previously was a strong challenger against Shinzo Abe for the leadership of the LDP in 2012, the faction did not enjoy a great deal of influence in intra-party machinations. Suigetsukai (水月会). Led by Shigeru Ishiba, who was a member of "Heisei Kenkyūkai" until 2011. As of December  2021, the faction has since been reorganised into a looser grouping, with only 12 members. Ishiba had long stood against factionalism in the LDP, but he formed his own faction to increase his support base. He started an informal group of 20 independents that met regularly, before Ishiba relented and finally formed his faction at the members’ behest. This small but steady group continued to rally behind Ishiba since its formation in 2015, but Ishiba’s failure to win the party presidency in 2020 contributed to his decision to step down as faction head. Following a decrease in members after  the 2021 Lower House election, the Ishiba faction downgraded itself to the less formalized “group.”