From New Lines Magazine
A culture war playbook honed by American conservatives is finding new life in East Asia
On Feb. 8, Japan will head to the polls after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi dissolved the lower house of parliament and called for snap elections, aiming to capitalize on her high approval ratings. The first woman to hold her office in a country where significant gender gaps persist, particularly in politics — notably without coming from a family of politicians — she has earned widespread support through her direct, less rigid approach. Her gamble is to use this momentum to secure a more substantial majority than the current one-seat margin held in coalition with the right-wing populist Japan Innovation Party.
Yet despite polls placing Takaichi’s support rate at 60%, it is not guaranteed that this personal popularity will translate into equally strong backing for the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) as a whole. Japan’s political terrain is being redefined by a brand of populism that bears a distinct American imprint — a phenomenon that is no longer an anomaly but a regional trend. One of the most compelling barometers of this election will be the performance of Sanseito, the far-right, xenophobic party that has sparked intense debate. Yet to fully grasp the “MAGAfication” of the region’s politics, one must look beyond Japan’s borders toward neighboring South Korea.
Every Saturday, a group of demonstrators gathers in Seoul, the capital of South Korea, equipped with the U.S. Stars and Stripes and the Taegeukgi — the red and blue Korean flag. They chant xenophobic slogans, using offensive slurs directed against Chinese residents in South Korea. They carry panels reading “Korea to Koreans” and wear baseball hats emblazoned with the well-known Trumpian refrain, slightly adapted: “Make Korea Great Again.” Leading the march is the far-right organization Free University, composed mostly of men in their 20s.
Eleonora Zocca is an Italian freelance journalist focused on East Asian politics and culture.
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