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Japan’s ruling Democrats, the progressive party that’s been in office for 10 months, lost seats in a parliamentary election Sunday—a worse-than-expected result, which will challenge the party more than ever to pass bills. According to exit polls by local media, the Democratic Party won fewer than 50 seats, down from 54 before the vote. What this means: Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s party will lose its 122-seat majority in the 242-seat upper house. To avoid stalls in parliament, the Democrats will likely seek new partners to form a coalition. Official results are expected Monday.