by Hiroshi HIYAMA

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's sky-high poll numbers have slipped as voters raise questions over a recent tax-cut pledge and how it would be financed, according to media surveys released on Monday.

The approval rating for the nationalist leader's government fell to 67 percent from 75 percent in December, falling "below 70 percent for the first time since she took office last October", according to a weekend survey by the Nikkei newspaper, which received 977 responses.

The dip came as Takaichi faced criticism for abruptly calling a snap election for February 8, just over a year after the last lower-house vote in October 2024 for a four-year term.

Takaichi, Japan's first woman prime minister, says the election is necessary to see if people support her and her new coalition government.

After her appointment three months ago, Takaichi had to scramble to form a coalition between her ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party (JIP) to gain a slim majority in the powerful lower house.

A possible election win would also allow her to claim a stronger mandate even though the LDP itself is battling low approval ratings and a string of scandals. 

Among her campaign pledges is to waive the consumption tax on food for two years, joining opposition promises to cut various taxes to ease the pressure on people struggling with inflation.

But she has not offered details of how to pay for it.

"My hope is to lower it as early as possible," she said Monday of the consumption tax during a televised panel discussion with opposition leaders, adding that she wanted to set up a public committee to discuss the issue.

The prospect of tax cuts roiled the bond market last week, after it was already rattled by Takaichi's massive stimulus plan and worried about fiscal slippage financed by debt.

Takaichi said Monday she was paying "considerable attention to fiscal sustainability".

Yoshihiko Noda, co-leader of the newly formed Centrist Reform Alliance opposition party, said during the panel that "we want to clearly indicate the funding sources (for the tax cut) and work to make this happen by autumn".

"The biggest issue (of the campaign) is, after all, rising prices."

'Voters leaving Takaichi'

"But 56 percent of respondents to the new Nikkei poll said they did not think a zero tax rate on food would be effective against rising prices," the business daily said.

A similar weekend poll by the liberal Mainichi Shimbun also showed Takaichi's approval rating drop to 57 percent from 67 percent seen in December. 

The Mainichi, which received 2,048 responses, said many people were frustrated over the abrupt election, as it slowed down legislative debates on a new government budget before the Japanese fiscal year ends in March.

Ryutaro Kono, chief economist at BNP Paribas, wrote in a note that "the surveys... suggest that the prime minister's popularity does not necessarily translate into a significant increase in votes for the Liberal Democratic Party".

"Delaying the passage of the budget to proceed with the general election likely caused a significant number of supporters to leave (Takaichi)."

However, the main opposition still appeared unable to shore up their standing in the eyes of voters, he wrote.

The latest poll by the top-selling Yomiuri Shimbun (with 1,034 responses) also said the government's popularity fell four points to 69 percent, with many people hoping to see more economic programmes to deal with soaring prices.