In Upper House race, younger voters in Tokyo turn to DPP for new direction

Japan Times

18-07-2025

A growing drive among younger voters to find an alternative to the traditions of the Liberal Democratic Party is taking center stage in Tokyo ahead of Sunday's Upper House election, where it has 32 candidates in the running for seven seats.
One party receiving increased interest amid such a shift is the Democratic Party for the People (DPP), which appears to be drawing in noticeably bigger and younger crowds to their speeches on the streets in the heart of Japan.
'The DPP strongly believes in bringing back a strong Japan — at the same time, we are firmly committed to pursuing policies that shed light on those people who have been dismissed up until now as being on their own,' said the Tokyo district's DPP candidate Mayu Ushida to a crowd in Shibuya Ward on Friday.
Although 40-year-old Ushida's youthful energy and public persona as a former NHK announcer is alluring, many in the crowd at her speeches say it's not just about her — they are supporters of what her party stands for and are looking to help the DPP gain more seats in parliament.
DPP candidate Mayu Ushida, along with party leader Tamaki Yuichiro, waves to supporters at Shibuya Scramble crossing on Jul. 11. |
Yukana Inoue
At Ushida's speech held near Shibuya's famous scramble crossing last Friday, she was accompanied by party leader Yuichiro Tamaki, who spent more than three times longer than Ushida talking to passers-by.
'When I say (enrich the working generation), people ask me, 'Are you cutting off the elderly?' — but that's fine,' said Tamaki to an enthusiastic crowd. 'We want to first and foremost offer thorough support to the working generation — all of you who are currently working and young people — because unless we strengthen the power of those who support it, we will ultimately end up reducing pension funds.'
The DPP, which runs on the primary campaign promise of increasing take-home pay, resonates with many in Tokyo, where the cost of living is the highest in the country, with supporters highly regarding the party's realistic and seemingly tangible policies.
'Since last year's Lower House election, I was struck by (the DPP's) policies that targeted the current working generation,' said a 23-year-old man, who asked to remain anonymous for privacy reasons, in the crowd in Shibuya. Prior to that, he said he used to support the LDP. '(The DPP's promise of) increasing take-home pay and protecting our own country by ourselves — I really feel that those are necessary (for our future).'
With the speech held in Shibuya, an area typically full of younger people, Tamaki strategically addressed college students, emphasizing the DPP's success in raising the tax-free income threshold for dependent children with part-time jobs from ¥1.03 million to ¥1.5 million, following through on its promise during the Lower House election.
'This was something that no one has done for 30 years — no party even paid attention to it — but we fought the election by incorporating the voices from university students in our policy and negotiated with the ruling party, and we were able to raise the amount to ¥1.5 million,' said Tamaki on Friday. 'This is what I mean — it may be a small change, but we create change with specific suggestions.'
A 21-year-old college student listening to Ushida, who was accompanied by the DPP secretary-general Kazuya Shimba the previous day in Hamura city, Tokyo, said she became interested in the DPP after taking an online party-matching questionnaire during last year's Lower House election and finding her beliefs aligned closest to it.
'Back then, I didn't really know them, but when I did more research I was surprised to find that there was a party that was doing everything I wanted — since I'm a college student, I really wanted them to raise the tax-free income threshold from ¥1.03 million,' said Sato, who asked to go by her last name.
'Since there are no DPP candidates in the Ibaraki district, I can only vote for the party under the proportional representation,' said Sato, who attends university in Tokyo but resides in Ibaraki Prefecture. In the district, media polls suggest, candidates from the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and Sanseito are vying for the DPP supporters, but neither interest her.
'I'm from Ibaraki, so cars are an absolute necessity, so I really want them to pay the gasoline tax .'
One of the DPP's campaign promises for this election is cutting the tax on gasoline to bring down gas prices — a lifeline for many like Sato.
A crowd gathers to hear DPP candidate Mayu Ushida, accompanied by DPP secretary-general Kazuya Shimba, in front of Hamura station on Jul. 10. |
Yukana Inoue
Elsewhere in Tokyo, another DPP candidate — albeit with less backup — is also attempting to garner votes by vouching for topics relevant to the working generation.
'When I began working after graduating from college, the issue I was confronted with was repaying my scholarship,' said Yoshihiro Okumura in front of Jiyugaoka Station in the capital's Meguro Ward on Friday.
At 31, he is one of the youngest candidates in the Tokyo district and spoke on the increasing number of working-generation people struggling to repay student loans, an issue that speaks to many in their 20s to 40s.
'A number of factors have combined to create this situation, including the economic issue that a family's take-home pay is not increasing while college tuition and living expenses are rising,' he said.
Aside from the DPP's pocketbook campaign, some constituents straying from the LDP have found a new home in far-right Sanseito , where a singer and candidate who goes by the name Saya has gained mass support running on the party's platform of 'Japanese first,' according to polls by major news agencies.
These alternatives in the district stand in jarring contrast to the LDP's Keizo Takemi, who is seeking to be re-elected for a sixth time at 73 years old. The former health minister has taken a contrasting approach to the DPP's grassroots tactics, appealing to seasoned supporters with speeches mainly held indoors with backing by big names including Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike, and former prime ministers Fumio Kishida and Taro Aso.
However, the district continues to be led by celebrity LDP candidate Daichi Suzuki — a former sports agency chief and Olympic swimmer who won gold for Japan in 1988 — with 30% of LDP supporters surveyed saying they will vote for him and also favored by a portion of voters unaffiliated with a party. Others trail closely behind, including incumbent representatives from the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan Ayaka Shiomura and the Japanese Communist Party's Yoshiko Kira, as well as Komeito's newcomer Yudai Kawamura, according to polls. Among voters in their 30s, Ushida is receiving the most support, and is favored by 40% of DPP supporters.
Early voting for the Upper House election began on July 4.