Japan PM Kishida’s support rate jumps to 46.6% in Kyodo poll

JAPANESE Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s approval rating surged by 8.5 percentage points to 46.6 per cent from last month in a Kyodo News poll.

Different polls by local media have shown a steady increase in public support since Kishida was targeted by an explosive device during an election campaign earlier this month. 

Disapproval rating was at 35.5 per cent in the Kyodo News survey, which was conducted by telephone on Saturday (Apri 29) and Sunday.

Among those polled, nearly 70 per cent also called for regulation on the development of artificial intelligence bots, while 63.7 per cent said they were worried about a fresh resurgence in Covid-19 infections as the government is set to downgrade the categorisation of the virus on May 8. BLOOMBERG