Japan: Abe's ruling bloc nets upper house win The ruling bloc of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has secured a decisive victory in an upper house election, according to exit polls. A win gives Abe a mandate for his recipe to revive the economy, which includes a growth strategy and reforms. It also ends a political deadlock and sets the stage for the country's first stable government since 2006. Abe returned to power after his Liberal Democratic Party-led coalition notched up a big win in a lower house poll in December. But, looking to the future, some business leaders are worried that he will weaken his push for reform in the face of a resurgent LDP. The officials results of the upper house poll are due to be published on Monday.