Japan's prime minister has issued a directive to reduce the number of seats in the House of Representatives by 45, a significant shift in the proportional representation system. This legislative reform specifies a lowering of the number of seats allocated to political parties based on their vote share. The motivation behind this move and its potential impacts on the Japanese political landscape are to be monitored closely.

In Japan, the reduction in House seats is a hotly debated topic. It impacts the balance of power among political parties, potentially shifting influence from the larger, more dominant parties to smaller parties. It is also associated with reductions in public spending. However, there are concerns that it could diminish the representativeness and diversity of the House.

In the US, proportional representation is used in some local and state elections, but not on a federal level, where the 'first-past-the-post' method is dominant. In the EU, many countries use forms of proportional representation, which allows for a wider variety of political parties, potentially providing a broad representation of society. The reduction in seats, however, is less common and may be controversial, depending on the context.