Koike dip leaves Abe in pole position as Japan vote enters home straight

TOKYO - Candidates in Japan made a last-ditch plea to voters on Saturday on the last day of campaigning before an election expected to return Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to power with a comfortable majority.

Polls show Abe and his conservative Liberal Democratic Party are clear favorites to win Sunday's election, handing him a fresh mandate for his hard line stance on North Korea and "Abenomics" growth strategy.

Abe's coalition is on track to win around 300 seats in the 465-seat lower house of parliament, according to a projection published by the Nikkei daily.