Photo/Illutration Yuichiro Tamaki, head of the Democratic Party for the People, speaks to its regional executive members across the nation at the party’s headquarters in Tokyo’s Nagatacho district on Dec. 15 about a possible merger of opposition forces. (Daizo Teramoto)

Two of the nation's largest opposition parties are ready to hold more talks about a possible merger as part of a strategy to increase their seats if a snap Lower House election is called next year.

The Democratic Party for the People held a meeting of its regional representatives to gauge interest in a proposal by the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan to form a more united bloc to fight the ruling coalition headed by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the next election.

The Dec. 15 meeting was held at the DPP’s headquarters in Tokyo’s Nagatacho district.

Party officials said no opposition was expressed to the idea of a merger of the two political forces, although there were calls for more in-depth discussions.

With this in mind, DPP leader Yuichiro Tamaki is expected to sit down shortly with Yukio Edano, head of the CDP, to discuss a possible merger.

Tamaki made clear at the outset of the Dec. 15 meeting that he will have to weigh the position of party and regional organization members in any discussions.

“I have already told Edano that it will take time for us to come up with a definitive answer," he added.

According to sources within the DPP, there was no opposition to starting discussions on a merger. It was just a matter of timing.

One party member was all for joining forces as soon as possible, saying, “We have to move with a sense of speed, with an eye on the next Lower House election.”

However, another member was more cautious, saying, “We should not be in such a rush that we compromise our policies and principles.”

Other viewpoints expressed were along the lines of being united on policy issues and principles rather than simply merging for political expediency.

After the meeting, Tamaki told reporters: “There was almost no opposition to holding talks with the CDP. The major concerns expressed centered on content. I intend to take all those opinions on board and hope to respond to Edano in the near future.”

On Dec. 6, Edano called on the DPP, the Social Democratic Party and other parties to start discussions about merging most of the opposition forces.

At a Dec. 12 meeting of its general affairs council, the DPP decided that such discussions must be left to the discretion of the party’s leadership.

(This article was written by Daizo Teramoto and Go Kobayashi.)