Abe re-elected easily despite low turnout in Japan polls

TOKYO: Exit polls suggest that the party of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has secured a large majority in the country's parliamentary elections. Mr Abe had called a snap poll to boost support for his economic reforms.
He was elected in 2012 and has tried to revive the economy by raising public spending and printing money.After an initial burst of growth, Japan slipped back into recession in the second half of this year.
Despite exit polls showing Mr Abe's conservative Liberal Democratic Party ahead, analysts said it would probably fall short of a two-thirds majority - meaning it was likely to remain in coalition with junior partner Komeito.
Shinzo Abe won comfortable re-election Sunday in a snap poll he had billed as a referendum on his economic policies after early success faded into a recession.
But a low turnout from unenthusiastic voters beset by a heavy snowfall across much of the country could cast doubt on the endorsement he will claim for “Abenomics”—his signature plan to fix the country’s flaccid economy, according to a news agency.