Official campaigning began across Japan on Tuesday for the Oct. 27 general election as Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba seeks a fresh mandate and aims to restore public trust in politics undermined by a slush funds scandal engulfing his ruling party.During the 12-day campaign, 1,344 candidates will vie for a total of 465 seats in the House of Representatives in the first contest since 2021. The lower chamber was dissolved last week, only eight days after Ishiba took office.The Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner Komeito are aiming to retain a combined majority in the lowe…READ FULL ARTICLE
