ABSTRACT
In spite of the strictness of party discipline and the excess of organisation, the election was poorly conducted. There were far too many candidates, and the forfeits of those who did not secure the minimum number of votes amounted to a large sum. In the end, in spite of an amount of violence and coercion for which even the Premier and Home Minister found themselves obliged to express regret, the Seiyukai had a majority of only one or two over the Minseito, and the question arose whether an immediate dissolution would not be advisable. Of eighty-eight Proletarian candidates only eight were elected, and of Mr. Muto Sanji’s Business Party, the only party with a real programme, only four; and there was a sprinkling of independents, some ready to be bought, others inclined to follow Mr. Ozaki Yukio, the most distinguished parliamentarian of them all. Neither side cared to seek an alliance with the Proletarians, so the Government made terms with Ozaki and the Business Party, and trusted to good party discipline to get it through the special session.
