Rather Defeat Than Winning

Quadrennial local election day appeared to be a driving force for the leading party. Liberal Democratic Party won all ten gubernatorial elections on Sunday. Party leaders including Prime Minister Shinzo Abe were satisfied with the result, recognizing it as following wind to his political agenda. However, victory for LDP could not come without steep decline of Democratic Party of Japan. Weakness of the opposite parties diminishes diversity of Japanese democracy.

Structure of ten gubernatorial elections was unusually advantageous for LDP. Four winners out of ten received support from both LDP and DPJ. DPJ could not raise its own candidate in other four elections. Only two elections were actual battlefields between LDP and DPJ, in each of which DPJ lagged behind. All ten winners were incumbent governors. It can also be said that voters chose stability of politics by succeeding current situation, rather than strongly support LDP.

LDP also won four out of five mayoral elections in ordinance-designated cities, while DPJ took only one, Sapporo. In Forty-one prefectural congress elections, LDP took the first place in all congresses except Osaka. Voter turnout was extremely low, marking the historical lowest in four gubernatorial and thirty-seven congress elections. No voting was taken place in around thirty percent of all constituencies of gubernatorial congress elections, because of no candidate beyond designated number of seats.

Leaders of LDP expressed their hope for next election, especially election of the House of Councillors next year. “We are seeing the achievement of Abenomics. It will be a momentum for the election net year,” told LDP Secretary General, Sadakazu Tanigaki. But, its coalition partner, Komeito, reduced its seats in local elections. In Osaka, it reduced the seats in prefectural congress. Komeito is annoyed with reputation of abandoning to be a peaceful party by supporting Abe’s security agenda.

DPJ is in jeopardy of elimination, while the leaders are refusing to admit. “It was a great achievement that we won in Sapporo mayoral election, in which the leading and the opposite collided. We recognize this victory for a step to revitalizing our party,” told DPJ Secretary General, Yukio Edano, in the statement. This comment was intentionally distorted the overall results, ignoring the decline of the party not only in national elections, but in local elections. If the party cannot play a role for scooping people’s opinion against LDP, DPJ is valueless in its existence.

It was unclear whether it was victory or defeat for Osaka Restoration Party. Although it kept the biggest status both in Osaka Prefecture and Osaka City congresses, it is still not clear they can achieve the reform of merging the both governments later this year. Its leader, Toru Hashimoto, seeks support from Abe with his conviction of constitutional amendment, which Abe strongly wants.