People in Japan will head to the polls on February 8.
Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae says she is seeking a stronger mandate for her coalition government.
The starting gun for the snap race will fire next week, after Takaichi dissolves the Lower House this Friday.
Speaking on Monday, she said her Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, are aiming for a majority.
Takaichi said: “I am putting my position as prime minister on the line. I want the people themselves to decide whether they are willing to entrust Takaichi Sanae with the task of running our nation. A Lower House election is thought to determine the government. If the ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party secure a majority, I will continue to lead this country.”
Her ruling coalition currently holds a slim majority in the Lower House, bolstered by three independent lawmakers.
During her announcement, Takaichi mentioned her plans to tackle affordability and said food prices are expected to continue to rise. She has promised to speed up efforts to remove the consumption tax from food products for two years.
Reporters also pressed her on claims made by some opposition parties, who say Japan appears to be shifting to the right on the political spectrum.
Takaichi said a country’s ultimate mission is to protect its people’s lives and livelihoods, so foreign and security policies are very important. She added that Japan isn’t shifting to the right, but becoming “a normal nation.”