General elections were held in Japan on 10 April 1946, the first after World War II, during the Allied occupation.

Prime Minister Kijūrō Shidehara, who had been appointed by the Emperor Hirohito in October 1945, dissolved the House of Representatives in December 1945.

Shidehara had been working with Allied occupation commander Douglas MacArthur to implement a new constitution and other political reforms.

On the other hand, Taiwanese and Koreans in Japan had their rights to vote and to run for office suspended.

The Liberals and Progressives agreed to form a government under Liberal leader Ichiro Hatoyama on 2 May, but Hatoyama was promptly purged on 4 May and a new government formed under Foreign Minister Shigeru Yoshida, who officially became Prime Minister on 22 May.