国民民主、立憲と合流協議入り決定　党内に懸念も

　国民民主党は１２日の総務会で、立憲民主党との合流協議に入ることを決めた。今後の対応は玉木雄一郎代表と平野博文幹事長に一任。対等な立場で党名やポストなどを協議するよう、立憲側に求めることも申し合わせた。
　この後の両院議員懇談会には、党所属衆参両院議員計３８人が出席。出席者からは、年内の合意を求める声が上がる一方、参院側を中心に「対等合併などできない」「保守層が離れて政権獲得が遠のく」などの懸念も出た。
　国民民主は１５日に全国幹事会を開き、地方組織の意見を聴取。これを踏まえ、立憲側との協議に臨む方針だ。（2019/12/12-19:39）

The Democratic Party for the People decided at an executive meeting on Thursday to enter merger talks with the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.
   The DPFP, the second-largest Japanese opposition party, decided to entrust party chief Yuichiro Tamaki and Secretary-General Hirofumi Hirano with the handling of the merger issue.
   Participants at the meeting also agreed to ask the CDPJ, the largest opposition party, to engage in discussions with the DPFP on an equal footing on setting the name of the merged party and deciding appointments of key party posts.
   Later in the day, the DPFP held a meeting of its lawmakers in both chambers of the Diet, the country's parliament, attended by 38 members. Some of them called for a merger by the end of the year.
   But others, especially from the House of Councillors, the upper chamber, were cautious, with one member saying, "A merger on an equal footing would be impossible." Another said, "Conservative voters will leave us, and it'll be harder to win power."