As the curtains came down on the Tokyo Olympics last Sunday, one person who should have been relieved was Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. For a country that is reeling under the effects of the coronavirus, the successful completion of the greatest sporting event on the planet should be acting as a springboard for Suga ahead of the general elections that will be held by late October.

That is not to be. A majority of Japanese have said in a recent survey that they wouldn't like to see Suga return to power when the elections are held in October. In the survey conducted by one of Japan's leading newspapers Yomiuri Shimbun, Suga's approval ratings stand at 35%, the lowest level since he assumed office last year. [https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14414274]

The numbers have not changed as an opinion poll held by the Nikkei Business daily survey late last month showed similar numbers. [https://www.dailysabah.com/sports/japan-pm-sugas-ratings-slide-as-covid-19-overshadows-tokyo-games/news]

And the most recent poll shows that the Olympics have made no difference. But that was not Suga's plan. A few months back, many thought that Suga would hold the Games to grand success and then hold elections soon. That may not happen now with the country in the grip of a fourth wave of the pandemic.

In fact, his insistence on holding Games, which some say was due to the pressure from the International Olympic Committee and the huge financial loss, may have gone against him as most Japanese were against the holding of Olympic Games. [https://www.newyorker.com/sports/sporting-scene/tokyos-olympics-have-become-the-anger-games]

The Suga government's lack of quick response to the virus, slow vaccine rollout and uncontrolled surge in COVID-19 may all have contributed to his plummeting numbers. The highly contagious Delta variant has not helped his case as many Covid cases are due to this variant.

To make matters worse, Suga may face a challenge to his leadership within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), weakening him further.

Read more:

Was Tokyo Games a success?
https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/was-the-tokyo-olympics-a-success-

Suga keen for another term:
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2021/07/17/national/politics-diplomacy/suga-ldp-presidential-election/


How his ratings starting falling:
https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Suga-s-approval-rating-plunges-toward-point-of-no-return