国际英语新闻：Japanese voting for upper house election starts

TOKYO, July 11 (Xinhua) -- Voting for the House of Councilors election began early Sunday morning in Japan. It is seen as a major test for Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan and the ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) which is headed by him.

Some 50,000 polling stations opened at 07:00 a.m. local time. About 100 million Japanese citizens aged 20 or older are eligible to cast ballots in Sunday's election.

The upper house election is the first national poll since the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) rose to power last September. A total of 437 candidates are contesting for the 121 seats in this year's election. The ruling coalition has been campaigning to secure at least 56 seats to retain a majority in the upper house.

During the campaign which started in late June, the ruling and opposition parties had engaged in hot debates over issues including a possible consumption tax hike and economic growth strategies.

Analysts said the election is going to have a great impact on whether Kan can run the government smoothly. Recent media polls revealed that the DPJ might find it hard to get 50 seats, compared to the 54 seats target set by Kan and 60 seats needed for a majority.

However, the DPJ will remain in power even if it fails to retain a majority in the election, because the party is controlling the more powerful lower house, or the House of Representatives.