1932 Japanese general election

General elections were held in Japan on 20 February 1932.[1] They were the last elections before the May 15 Incident, which marked the temporary end of party politics in Japan. Rikken Seiyūkai won 301 of the 466 seats in the House of Representatives.

1932 Japanese general election

20 February 1932
All 466 seats to the House of Representatives 234 seats needed for a majority
Leader Tsuyoshi Inukai Reijiro Wakatsuki Party Seiyūkai Minseitō Leader's seat Okayama-2nd Peers Last election 174 seats 273 seats Seats won 301 146 Seat change 127 127 Popular vote 5,683,137 3,442,326 Percentage 58.20% 35.25%
House of Representatives conformation
Prime Minister before election Tsuyoshi Inukai Seiyūkai Prime Minister-designate Tsuyoshi Inukai Seiyūkai

Background

In 1931, the ruling Rikken Minseitō opposed the Mukden Incident, which was engineered by the military. The anti-war Foreign Minister Kijuro Shidehara and Prime Minister Wakatsuki Reijirō were criticized for their intervention in military and was accused of "serious corruption". After the resignation of the Reijirō Cabinet, some right-wing members of the ruling party formed a coalition with the opposition Rikken Seiyūkai and elected Inukai Tsuyoshi as prime minister.

Before the elections, some businessmen and candidates were assassinated by the right-wing.

Results

Despite assassinations of anti-war politicians, Rikken Minseitō was unpopular because of its mishandling of the economic crisis. The ruling right-wing Rikken Seiyūkai led by Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi won a landslide victory.

Party	Votes	%	Seats	+/–
Rikken Seiyūkai	5,683,137	58.20	301	+127
Rikken Minseitō	3,442,326	35.25	146	–127
Social Democratic Party	125,758	1.29	3	+1
Shakai Taishūtō	127,459	1.31	2	New
Kakushintō	36,839	0.38	2	–1
Other parties	1,445	0.01	0	–
Independents	347,668	3.56	12	+7
Invalid/blank votes	49,036	–	–	–
Total	9,813,668	100	466	0
Registered voters/turnout	13,103,679	74.89	–	–
Source: Voice Japan

References

1. Bernd Martin (2006) Japan and Germany in the Modern World, Berghahn Books, p136