Tokyo, Japan (CNN) -- The ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) appears to have failed to gain a majority in the upper house of the Japanese parliament Sunday, exit polls by Japanese media showed.
Nationally televised election programs announced that exit polls showed the DPJ winning around 47 seats, calling the election result a defeat for ruling party.
Half of the upper house seats, or 121 out of the total of 241 seats, were up for grabs in Sunday's national election.
The DPJ, which marked a landslide victory in the general election last August, lost its momentum after the sudden resignation of former Prime Minsiter Yukio Hatoyama and his successor Naoto Kan's hint at a possible hike in the consumption tax.
Kan became Japan's leader on June 4.
