The LDP, or Liberal Democratic Party, has been the dominate political force in Japan since World War II. Party members have held the office of prime minister almost continuously for more than 50 years. In addition, the party also held a majority of seats in the House of Councillors, the upper house of the Diet, from its founding in 1955 to 2007. The party also controlled the House of Representatives, the lower house, for much of this time, loosing control of the body in the 1990's, but regaining it again in the past decade.
How It's Used
"For six decades, two things have been more or less certain in Japanese politics -- that the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) would run the show, and that it would put the U.S.-Japan alliance at the center of its foreign policy. Indeed, Japan has only had one non-LDP prime minister in the last 53 years, and he served for only 11 months."
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