Shinzo Abe re-elected as Japan PM

The lower house of the Japanese parliament on Wednesday supported 60-year-old Shinzo Abe with 328 votes compared to 73 for opposition leader Katsuya Okada. The upper house of the parliament also confirmed Abe's election to the premier's post.

Abe's cabinet resigned on Wednesday morning after his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its coalition partner Komei won the polls that took place on December 14 with a two-thirds majority.

New defense minister

The re-elected prime minister was expected to announce a new cabinet on Wednesday afternoon, expected to be similar to Abe's old choice of ministers. Deputy Premier and Finance Minister Taro Aso and Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida are likely to retain their positions.

According to local media, General Nakatani was being considered for the defense minister's post. Nakatani served as defense minister in former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's government and was in favor of a more proactive military.

Premier Abe was also looking into revising the country's constitution as part of his effort to revitalize Japan's defense forces. Japan committed to pacifism under the constitution drafted by US occupation forces after Tokyo's defeat in World War II.

'Abenomics' in focus

However, Japanese citizens were likely to concentrate more on Abe's domestic economic policies, especially tough plans to enforce reforms. After his victory at the polls this month, Abe promised he would "push on with Abenomics," a blend of government spending, monetary easing and reforms to Japan's highly regulated economy.

Abe has four years, until December 2018, to implement strategies that will revive an economy that went into recession last year after sales tax was hiked.

mg/es (AFP, AP)