The Social Democratic Party (SDP), in Japanese more commonly known as Shakai Minshu-to, is a political party of Japan. It was formerly known as the Japan Socialist Party (JSP), until 1996, when it had a name change. It claims to be a social-democratic party. It lost much of its members to the likewise left-wing Democratic Party of Japan in 1998, and today is the smallest Japanese political party.

The SDP was originally known as the Japan Socialist Party, or JSP, in Japanese known as the Nihon Shakai-to and was formed in 1945. The party became the largest political party in the 1947 general elections, and a government was formed by Katayama Tetsu, forming a coalition with the Democratic Party of Japan, Occupation and another minor party. However, due to the rebellion of Marxist tendencies in the party, the Katayama government collapsed. As a result, the party was split into the Rightist Socialist Party of Japan, formed of socialists more to the center, while the Leftist Socialist Party of Japan was formed by hardline left-wingers and Marxist-socialists. The two socialist parties were merged in 1955, reunifying and recreating the Japan Socialist Party. However, the party was again split in 1960 because of internal conflicts, and the breakaway group (a part of the old Right Socialist Party of Japan, their most moderate faction) created the Democratic Socialist Party (Japan), though the Japan Socialist Party was preserved.

In 1986, Takako Doi became the leader of the party. Under her leadership the party was temporarily recovered from its decline. In 1993, the LDP lost its majority for the first time in 38 years, and Hosokawa coalition government was formed by anti-LDP liberals (the Japan Renewal Party and the Japan New Party , the Japanese Communist Party the Clean Government Party (Former), the Democratic Socialist Party, the New Frontier Partythe New Sakigake Party , and the JSP). In 1994, however, the JSP and the New Sakigake Party decided to leave the non-LDP coalition to form a coalition with LDP under the premiership of Tomiichi Murayama, the JSP leader at that time.

In 1996, the party changed its name from Japan Socialist Party to Social Democratic Party (SDP) as an interim party for forming a new party. However, a movement for transforming SDP into a new "social democratic and liberal" party was unsuccessful. Since 1996, when the social democratic and liberal Democratic Party of Japan was created by the majority of SDP members and liberals, it has grown smaller and smaller.

The Social Democratic Party won only 6 seats in the general elections of November 9, 2003, as compared with 18 seats in the previous elections of 2000. It is widely accepted that this heavy defeat is due to its strong and continuous support to North Korea. SDP denied the controversial North Korean abductions of Japanese.

Doi Takako was leader of SDP since 1996, but she resigned in 2003, feeling that the reason her party lost in the elections was because of her, as chairwoman.

Fukushima Mizuho was elected as the new leader of the party on November 15, 2003. In the 2004 Upper House Elections, SDP won only 2 seats, thus having 5 seats in the Upper House and 6 seats in the Lower House. The party now is still showing signs of decline, especially since the DPJ has been getting ever more popular.

See also

• Japan,
• Japan general election, 2003,
• Politics of Japan,
• List of political parties in Japan,
• Democratic Party of Japan,
• Democratic Socialist Party (Japan),
• Japanese Communist Party
• Japan Socialist Party
• Rightist Socialist Party of Japan
• Leftist Socialist Party of Japan

External links

• Social Democratic Party of Japan

The official website of the SDP. Has no English section, though it claims it is accessible to all. There is a link to e-mail addresses at the bottom of the page, however.