Tokyo: Millions of Japanese citizens are preparing to head to the polls this Sunday to elect 125 lawmakers for the House of Councilors, the upper chamber of parliament. This election is seen as critical for the minority government led by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

According to Anadolu Agency, the upper house consists of 248 members who serve six-year terms, with elections held every three years to fill half of the seats. This year, voters will elect the usual 124 members, with an additional seat left vacant. More than 104 million registered voters are eligible to participate in the elections, which will take place from 7 am to 8 pm local time (2200GMT Saturday to 1100GMT Sunday). A total of 519 candidates are vying for these seats.

Approximately 9.8 million, or 9.48% of eligible voters, have already cast their ballots during early voting, which took place from July 4 to 13. Voters will cast two votes: one for the 75 constituency seats that are directly elected, and another for 50 seats elected through proportional representation. Paper ballots, provided at polling stations, will be used for voting, where voters write the name of their preferred candidate from the electoral district or choose a party's name or a candidate's name for proportional representation.

The ruling coalition, comprising Prime Minister Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior partner Komeito, currently holds 75 seats. To maintain a majority in the upper house, the coalition needs to win at least 50 seats from the 125 up for grabs. Campaigning began on July 3, with key issues such as rising prices, regional security, Japan's ties with the US, foreign policy, and the future of the country's strained social security system taking center stage.

The LDP-Komeito coalition lost its majority in the lower house election in October, leading Ishiba to govern with the support of smaller opposition parties. Early polls indicate a tight race, with media reports suggesting that the LDP is underperforming and the coalition is at risk of losing control of the upper house.