Governor Koike to Run 64 Candidates for Working Majority
A major assembly election slated this summer for the Tokyo Metropolitan government, Governor Yuriko Koike is looking for a working majority in the 127-seat assembly by deploying 64 of her party mates in all 42 constituencies. Governor Koike is to announce the second batch of candidates February 6.
Koike's party "Tokyo Citizens First" has made it clear to tie up with Komeito in the forthcoming assembly election. Komeito has in mind 23 candidates to run in the election.
Masami Ishikawa, 75, a close affiliate of Governor Koike, made his 5th term earlier on February 5 in a remarkable landslide victory. Addressing at the victory ceremony, Governor Koike pointed out the citizens' support for a Great Tokyo Revolution had manifested throughout Ishikawa's election campaign to earn him extra votes. Governor Koike commented:
"Each constituency is unique and calls for meticulous attention to clinch it. We have to do it custom-made. "
The Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly seats 127 members, currently shared by Liberal Democratic Party with 57, Komeito 22, Democratic Progressive Party and affiliates 18, Japan communist party 17, etc.
The leading party LDP is threatened by Koike's burgeoning party "Tokyo Citizens' First" generated by massive pro-Koike waves. The upset in Chiyoda Ward, the home of a certain backroom fixer named a super mouse, proves fatal to the party and at the end of the day, LDP is doomed to play second fiddle to Governor Koike and her black mice hunters.
In fact, the ward election in Chiyoda was a de facto proxy war between Governor Koike and LDP and the outcome implies that the assembly election on July 2 is likely to be another losing battle for LDP.
That is not all. The Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election is itself another proxy war leading to the forthcoming general election. (Nathan Shiga)
