Shizuoka Governor Kawakatsu Seeks Third Term
An usually interesting gubernatorial race is shaping up in Shizuoka Prefecture, with sources confirming yesterday that opposition-supported Heita Kawakatsu will be running for a third term in office.
An usually interesting gubernatorial race is shaping up in Shizuoka Prefecture, with sources confirming yesterday that opposition-supported Heita Kawakatsu will be running for a third term in office.
It was inevitable at some point, but after more than four years of dominating the political landscape, clear signs are emerging that the ruling Liberal Democratic Party is losing its discipline and reverting to some of its bad habits of the past, before they were booted out of power in the 2009-2012 period.
The Abe administration is now warming to the notion of moving forward with the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) pact with the eleven nations other than the United States.
Another prominent Democratic Party conservative offered a resignation today, and defections are ongoing among Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly members. In the near term, these are heavy blows to the party leadership of President Renho and Secretary-General Yoshihiko Noda which might bring them down in the late summer months.
One of the most prominent conservative lawmakers resigns from the leading opposition Democratic Party. He likely won’t be the last.
The posters are beginning to appear on the city walls and the various parties are accelerating their preparations. The Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly elections are now only three months away, and analysts are wondering just how dominant Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike will become when the contest has concluded.
Explainer for Denryoku Soren, the Federation of Electric Power Related Industry Worker’s Unions
The unique history of the Izu Gakushu Kaikan
The Democratic Party’s labor union backers are throwing a wrench into political strategy.
Then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi set a goal of having women occupy 30% of leadership positions by 2020, but Japan will come nowhere close.