SDP retains party status in Japan upper house race with anti-discrimination message
Mizuho Fukushima, leader of the SDP, said during a July 21 press conference that the election results showed that "voters wanted the SDP to remain."
Under Japan's Public Offices Election Act, to qualify as an official party, a political party must either have five or more sitting members in the Diet, or secure at least 2% of the vote in either the most recent House of Representatives or House of Councillors election in the proportional representation or constituency race.
The SDP received 1,217,823 votes in the proportional representation bloc, amounting to 2.06% of the total. The party also secured one seat, which went to TV personality LaSalle Ishii, who received 207,143 votes under his name.
"There is no such thing as first or second when it comes to human beings," was the first thing Ishii said when campaigning began on July 3 -- as opposed to the slogan "Japanese First" touted by the right-wing populist party Sanseito. Ishii repeated this message throughout his campaign speeches across the country.
Fukushima called Ishii's statement "words of wisdom." Regarding the reasons the SDP was able to meet the status threshold, she cited the party's stance on rising prices and the use of taxes, and added, "We made it strong and clear that we will fight against discrimination and xenophobia. Our message resonated with people."
Speaking at the same press conference, Ishii said, "I asked voters to join this drama about climbing back from the edge, and we got a reasonably good result. I want to continue clear communication to get my messages across."
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