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House of Councillors of Japan

House of Councillors
参議院
Sangiin
Coat of arms or logo
Type
Type
Leadership
Chūichi Date, LDP (caucus: independent)
Since August 1, 2016
Akira Gunji, DP (caucus: independent)
Since August 1, 2016
Opposition leader
Renhō, DP
Since September 15, 2016
Structure
Seats 242
第24回参議院議員通常選挙.svg
Political groups

Party strength before 191st DietGovernment (146)

  LDP (121)
  Kōmeitō (25)

Revisionist opposition (15)

  Initiatives (12)
  PJK (3)

Other opposition (69)

  DP (49)
  JCP (14)
  Energize (2)
  SDP (2)
  LP (2)

Independents & others (12)

  Government-aligned independents (3)
  Opposition-aligned independents (5)
  OSMP (1)
  Other independents (3)
Elections
Parallel voting:
Single non-transferable vote (146 seats)
Party-list proportional representation (96 seats)
Staggered elections
Last election
July 10, 2016
Meeting place
Japanese diet inside.jpg
National Diet Building, Tokyo
Website
www.sangiin.go.jp

Coordinates: 35°40′35.5″N 139°44′40.5″E / 35.676528°N 139.744583°E / 35.676528; 139.744583

Party strength before 191st DietGovernment (146)

Revisionist opposition (15)

Other opposition (69)

Independents & others (12)

The House of Councillors (参議院 Sangiin?) is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan. The House of Representatives is the lower house. The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre-war House of Peers. If the two houses disagree on matters of the budget, treaties, or designation of the prime minister, the House of Representatives can insist on its decision. In other decisions, the House of Representatives can override a vote of the House of Councillors only by a two-thirds majority of members present.

The House of Councillors has 242 members who each serve six-year terms, two years longer than those of the House of Representatives. Councillors must be at least 30 years old, compared with 25 years old in the House of Representatives. The House cannot be dissolved, as only half of its membership is elected at each election. Of the 121 members subject to election each time, 73 are elected from the 47 prefectural districts (by single non-transferable vote) and 48 are elected from a nationwide list by proportional representation with open lists.


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Wikipedia

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