In total, early voting comprised 26.10 percent of all eligible voters in the poll.

Japan’s February 8 House of Representatives election drew a record high level of early voting, with 27,017,098 people casting ballots in the single-seat constituencies according to the internal affairs ministry.

The Asahi Shimbun estimates turnout in single-seat districts at 55.68 percent, underscoring the record pace of early voting.

Winter weather concerns, including forecasts of heavy snow, raised questions about turnout across regions.

Forecasts of heavy snow likely prompted many voters to cast ballots by Saturday ahead of Sunday’s weather.

As of January 26, early voting accounted for 26.10 percent of all eligible voters, up 5.93 percentage points from the previous Lower House election.

The 26.10 percent early-voter share represents a 1.29-fold increase from the 2024 race, the highest for any parliamentary election to date.

Early voting spanned January 28 to February 7, and preliminary ministry figures released on February 8 show 27,017,098 people participated.

Overall turnout rose above the 2024 Lower House level of 53.85 percent, marking the third-lowest turnout in postwar history.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi dissolved the Lower House last January and scheduled a snap election for February—the first February Lower House election in 36 years.

Early voting surged across all 47 prefectures, with Tochigi, Niigata, Ishikawa, and Hokkaido posting the sharpest increases (about 1.43x, 1.37x, 1.31x, and 1.29x respectively).