1937 Japanese general election

← 1936 30 April 1937 1942 →
elected members →
All 466 seats in theHouse of Representatives 234 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	71.64% ( 7.00pp)
First party Second party Third party   Leader Machida Chūji Various[a] Abe Isoo Party Rikken Minseitō Rikken Seiyūkai Shakai Taishūtō Leader's seat Akita-1st - Tokyo-2nd Last election 39.92%, 205 seats 37.62%, 174 seats 4.66%, 18 seats Seats won 179 175 37 Seat change 26 1 19 Popular vote 3,689,355 3,594,863 928,934 Percentage 36.16% 35.23% 9.10% Swing 3.76pp 2.39pp 4.44pp   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   SWK Leader Vacant Adachi Kenzō Nakano Seigō Party Shōwakai Kokumin Dōmei Tōhōkai Leader's seat - Kumamoto-1st Fukuoka-1st Last election 4.78%, 20 seats 3.79%, 15 seats – Seats won 18 11 11 Seat change 2 4 New party Popular vote 928,934 281,834 221,455 Percentage 4.06% 2.76% 2.17% Swing 0.72pp 1.03pp New party
Districts shaded according to winners' vote strength
Prime Minister before election Senjūrō Hayashi Imperial Japanese Army Prime Minister after election Senjūrō Hayashi Imperial Japanese Army

General elections were held in Japan on 30 April 1937 to elect the 466 members of the House of Representatives,^[1] after the dissolution of Parliament on 31 March.Rikken Minseitō emerged as the largest in Parliament, with 179 of the 466 seats. The election was a major success forShakai Taishūtō, which became the third-largest party in the Diet, the first socialist party to do so in Japanese history. In contrast, the mildly pro-militaryRikken Minseitō lost several seats and fascist groups such asTōhōkai remained minor forces in the House. A month after the election, the Emperor replaced Prime Minister Hayashi withFumimaro Konoe. Voter turnout was 73%.^[2]

In February 1937 GeneralSenjūrō Hayashi was appointed prime minister. Just days after taking office and having the Diet enact a budget bill, he ordered a dissolution of the House of Representatives, hoping to weaken the major political parties. The act was opposed by the major political parties as well as by the general public, and quickly became known as the "dine and dash dissolution [ja]".

In 1941 the Diet under the Konoe government passed alaw extending the term of the Representatives [ja] from four years to five. This allowed time to solidify the control of theImperial Rule Assistance Association over Japanese politics. The Association effectively replaced all political parties in Japan and subsequently dominated the1942 general election, although numerous factions developed within the Association's caucus in the House. The term extension was effectively repealed by theConstitution of Japan in 1947, which returned the representatives' term of office to 4 years.

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Rikken Minseitō	3,689,355	36.16	179	−26
	Rikken Seiyūkai	3,594,863	35.23	175	+1
	Shakai Taishūtō	928,934	9.10	37	+19
	Shōwakai	414,088	4.06	19	−1
	Kokumin Dōmei	281,834	2.76	11	−4
	Tōhōkai	221,455	2.17	11	New
	Others	1,073,157	10.52	34	0
Total		10,203,686	100.00	466	0
Valid votes		10,203,686	98.89
Invalid/blank votes		114,116	1.11
Total votes		10,317,802	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		14,402,497	71.64
Source: Mackie & Rose,[3]Voice Japan

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