The election is expected to strengthen Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party’s position in parliament. The party rules the country in a coalition.
Shinzo Abe was assassinated when he gave a speech last Friday to a small crowd of people in the city of Nara ahead of the election. On Saturday, the remains of Abe were transported to his home in Tokyo. The car was met by mourners who wanted to honor his memory.
Despite the country’s shock and the election inevitably taking place in the shadow of the assassination, the current Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and other politicians have stressed the importance of the democratic process taking place.
“We must never allow violence to silence speech during an election, that is the foundation of a democracy,” Kishida wrote on Twitter on Saturday.
Shinzo Abe resigned as Prime Minister for health reasons in 2020, but has continued to work in politics with a lower profile.
Abe was in Nara to campaign for another candidate in the Liberal Democratic Party when the perpetrator appeared from behind and shot him. The shooter was overpowered and arrested on the spot.
Shinzo Abe turned 67 years old. Stock Photography.