DP to seek parliamentary Group with CDPJ, Party of Hope

December 17, 2017

Tokyo- Senior members of local branches of the Japanese opposition Democratic Party on Saturday expressed support for the party leadership's proposal to ask the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and the Party of Hope to form a joint parliamentary group with the DP.

They supported the idea during a meeting at the DP's headquarters in Tokyo, which was held for discussions on measures to reconstruct the party.

Meanwhile, a majority of the participating local officials called for keeping the party intact.

In talks with reporters after the meeting, DP leader Kohei Otsuka said, "Now that we gained support for the plan to seek a parliamentary group with the CDPJ and the Party of Hope, we'll hold discussions on the matter among our party's lawmakers."

At the meeting, some participants said that DP should quickly transform itself into a new party while many others supported the status-quo, according to people present at the gathering. No participant sought to change the party's name, they said.

The DP leadership team showed a plan to set up a new body to review the party's platform and basic policies. Aiming to reach a consensus by year-end, the DP will hold a meeting of its lawmakers and local branch representatives on Dec. 25.

On the DP's plan to seek a parliamentary group with the CDPJ and the Party of Hope, Yukio Edano, leader of the CDPJ, told reporters in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Saturday.

"We'll welcome those who support our party's principles and policies joining our parliamentary group based on their individual decisions." Jiji Press