Japan Cherry Blossom Scandal Starts to Drag Down Abe Support
- Party drew about 18,000 people to a Tokyo park this year
- Opposition says Abe used blossom party invites as perks
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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe saw his support rating slide amid questions about whether he rewarded supporters with invitations to a publicly funded cherry blossom-viewing party.
Support for the cabinet fell 6 percentage points in November to hit 42%, according to a poll published Monday in the Mainichi newspaper, the lowest since Abe reshuffled his ministers two months ago. Respondents cited the cherry blossom scandal, which opposition lawmakers have used to slow the ruling party’s legislative agenda, as a source of their displeasure.