Latest news with #PublicOfficesElectionAct
Tokyo Weekender
2 days ago
- Politics
- Tokyo Weekender
Disgraced Ito City Mayor Yet To Resign After False University Claims Revealed
Earlier this month, a city council committee in Shizuoka Prefecture submitted a resolution urging Ito city mayor Maki Takubo to resign after it was revealed she falsely claimed that she graduated from Toyo University. She had, in fact, had been expelled. Following the news, Takubo, who was only elected in May, said she planned to quit before the end of July. She added that she intended to run for reelection. Maki Takubo To 'Properly Sort Out the Facts' on July 31 In her most recent press conference on Monday, however, Takubo failed to confirm whether she would be resigning. 'Regarding my future, I will hold another press conference on July 31. I will then properly sort out the facts and make an announcement,' said the Ito city mayor. Unsurprisingly, reporters questioned whether she would be submitting her resignation at said press conference. Takubo was evasive in her response, stating that the matter would be discussed on Thursday. The lack of clarity in her statement has led to speculation that she may be planning to continue as mayor of the hot spring resort city. Given what's happened, though, that still seems unlikely. The resolution calling for her to resign was unanimously passed by the Ito municipal assembly. The assembly also called for the establishment of a special investigative committee to look into allegations that Takubo intentionally falsified information about her background. In an Ito city public relations magazine, she was called a Toyo University graduate. Takubo admitted she approved this description, but claimed that prior to June 28, she believed she had graduated. She allegedly showed the city assembly speaker what she said was a diploma. Takubo Declines Summons From Investigative Committee At a press conference on July 7, Takubo insisted that she would submit the diploma, along with her yearbook and an enrollment certificate, to the Shizuoka District Public Prosecutors' office. However, according to reports, she has yet to provide these documents. Last week, Takubo also declined a summons from the investigative committee. It plans to summon her again. If she refuses to appear, the committee may file a criminal accusation. Since July 2, Ito's city public relations office has reportedly received more than 1,800 complaints about Mayor Takubo . A local business operator also filed a criminal complaint against her f or allegedly violating the Public Offices Election Act over the issue of false academic credentials. The person was reportedly contacted by the police on July 28 to confirm that the complaint had been received. Related Posts Togo Mayor Resigns After Calling Employee Dumber Than a Pigeon Shinkansen Delayed After Angry Man Throws Cup Noodles At It The World's First AI Mayor Is Here
The Mainichi
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Mainichi
Actor LaSalle Ishii helps save SDP in Japan election, vows to fight for peace and equality
TOKYO -- Facing the threat of losing its official party status in the July 20 House of Councillors election, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) was rescued from the brink by actor LaSalle Ishii, 69, who ran in the proportional representation race and won his first seat. The SDP barely cleared the 2% vote threshold required for party status, at 2.06%. Of the more than 1.21 million votes the party received in the proportional race, over 200,000 were cast for Ishii personally. As a new upper house lawmaker, he says he wants to tackle issues such as the U.S. military base problem in Okinawa and making scholarships -- which in Japan are often akin to low-intertest loans -- truly free. "I decided to stop giving up. I decided to stop just watching in silence. I decided to make politics my work." Ishii declared this in a hoarse voice at a street rally in Tokyo's Ueno area on July 13, standing alongside SDP leader Mizuho Fukushima. During the campaign, he traveled from Kagoshima in Japan's southwest to Hokkaido in the north, giving speeches across the country. Ishii rose to fame in the 1980s as a member of the comedy group Konto Akashingo with Masayuki Watanabe and others, during the "manzai" comedy boom. He is also well known as the voice of Kankichi Ryotsu, the main character in the anime adaptation of the popular manga "Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Koen-mae Hashutsujo" ("Kochikame"). Since 2020, Ishii has written a column for the evening tabloid Nikkan Gendai called "Tofunseisho" (which ended in June), where he discussed issues such as inequality and poverty and criticized the government. As his political statements became more prominent, he faced a backlash, including being told "celebrities shouldn't talk politics" and seeing a noticeable drop in his TV bookings. Ishii says the SDP had been approaching him about running for office for about a decade, but he had hesitated due to his acting career. This time, with the party's status at stake before the election, he felt strongly that "the SDP, which stubbornly stands for peace and against poverty, must survive," and decided to run. Under the Public Offices Election Act, a party must have at least five Diet members or win at least 2% of the vote in the most recent national election to maintain official status. Without party status, the SDP would lose privileges such as running dual candidates in single-member and proportional districts and broadcasting campaign messages in single-member districts. With only three Diet members, the SDP set a 2% vote share as its goal. At a street rally, Ishii explained to voters why he decided to run, saying, "I thought it would be interesting to take on the job of protecting the SDP's party status." A 'centrist' at heart Ishii says his commitment to peace is strong. He was influenced by the works of legendary manga artist Osamu Tezuka, which he loved as a child. "Some people dismiss Tezuka's manga as fake humanism, but I learned the importance of people loving and coexisting with each other," Ishii said. On social media, he is sometimes derided as a "payoku" (a derogatory term for liberals), but he says, "I'm from the anti-establishment folk generation. Of course, I speak out for peace, and I consider myself a centrist." He also sympathized with the political stances of the Japanese Communist Party and Reiwa Shinsengumi, but says the SDP was the first to approach him, and the personality of party leader Fukushima was decisive. "She doesn't just go along with the crowd, and in a good way. I was drawn to her unwavering stance on peace." 'No such thing as first or second among human beings' During the campaign, there was a surge in rhetoric calling for stricter regulations on and discriminatory remarks about foreigners, such as that they are being given unfair favorable treatment. In Sapporo, a woman of Korean descent in her 20s told Ishii, "We're so used to discrimination that it doesn't even faze us anymore." Ishii said he was shocked and saddened, adding, "There's no way this kind of society is acceptable." He warned that when society feels stifling, people are drawn to things that shine with energy, and he is wary of rising xenophobia. He also directly challenged the surging right-wing populist party Sanseito. "What does 'Japanese First' even mean? There's no such thing as first or second among human beings," he said, referring to Sanseito's election slogan. Looking ahead to his first day in the Diet on Aug. 1, Ishii told the Mainichi Shimbun that the SDP's role is to block constitutional revision. "I don't think the SDP's message is reaching a huge number of people, but even if it's not flashy, I want to steadily talk about the ideals of peace. Important ideals are neither old nor new," he said. (Japanese original by Tohru Shirakawa, Tokyo Bureau)
The Mainichi
22-07-2025
- Politics
- The Mainichi
SDP retains party status in Japan upper house race with anti-discrimination message
TOKYO -- The Social Democratic Party (SDP) secured 2% of votes in the July 20 House of Councillors proportional representation bloc, meeting the legal requirement to maintain its political party title. 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."
The Mainichi
20-07-2025
- Politics
- The Mainichi
Ex-NHK announcer Ushida projected to win in Japan upper house race
TOKYO -- Mayu Ushida, a former NHK announcer and political newcomer, is projected to win a seat in the Tokyo constituency in the July 20 House of Councillors election. The Democratic Party for the People (DPFP) fielded two candidates in the Tokyo electoral district, where six seats were contested and one vacancy was to be filled. DPFP leader Yuichiro Tamaki and other party executives campaigned vigorously to win the party's first seat in this constituency. Ushida was officially endorsed by the DPFP in April. She admitted at the time, "There were so many things I didn't know about the Public Offices Election Act, and I was at a loss over whom to ask." Despite being an obviously inexperienced candidate, she capitalized on the momentum from the DPFP's success in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election in June, where the party's seats increased from zero to nine. (Japanese original by Minhyang Hong, Tokyo Bureau, and Makoto Kakizaki, Tokyo City News Department)
The Mainichi
17-07-2025
- Politics
- The Mainichi
Rumors suggest double-voting, impersonation possible in Japan elections. They are false
TOKYO -- As the July 20 House of Councillors election approaches, social media platforms are awash with claims like, "Advance voting does not require ID, so one person can vote multiple times, and even those without voting rights can cast a ballot." Double-voting and voting by those without suffrage are prohibited under the Public Offices Election Act, so is this truly possible? ID not required? On social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, posts have emerged since around July 3, when campaigning for the upper house race officially kicked off, claiming, "Since there's no ID check, you can impersonate someone else to vote as many times as you want," and, "Advance voting doesn't require an ID. You can get as many ballots as you want." One such post on X had been viewed about 5.18 million times and received 40,000 likes as of July 15. According to the Election Management Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the Public Offices Election Act does not mandate the presentation of identification, either on election day or for early voting. Individuals who visit polling stations for advance voting can receive a ballot after a receptionist checks the information -- such as name, date of birth and address -- on the declaration form on the back of the voter card sent to their home against the electoral roll. However, some eligible voters may forget to bring these cards to the polling station. In such cases, voters can receive a ballot if their personal information such as their name matches that on the electoral roll. If one has already voted, that information is promptly reflected in the electoral register, preventing the same person from getting another ballot. Those without voting rights will also not receive a ballot because their names are not on the voters' list. Therefore, claims like "one can vote multiple times" or "those without rights can vote" are incorrect. Despite this, human errors leading to double-voting due to insufficient checks of the electoral roll have occurred. On July 9 in the city of Kitakyushu, a double-voting case occurred due to a staff error during advance voting for the upper house election. Preventing impersonators from voting One post on social media claimed, "Since there's no ID check, impersonation is possible." While the Public Offices Election Act does not require people to present IDs, it is prohibited to vote while impersonating someone else. The internal affairs ministry issues notifications to municipalities when national elections take place to encourage identity verification to prevent imposters from voting. Based on these notifications, municipal election management committees verify people's identities, if necessary, using documents like driver's licenses or My Number national ID cards. The election management committee in the suburban Tokyo city of Musashino requests photo IDs when necessary to prevent double-voting and impersonation. When checking the declaration form against the electoral register, election officials also look for any suspicious signs displayed by visitors and, if needed, conduct additional verification through verbal confirmation or rechecking the information on the form. A representative confidently stated about the measures taken, "We look to see if they can recite their personal information smoothly and whether there is anything suspicious in their expression." Election system based on doctrine of innate goodness "The Japanese election system is based on the doctrine of innate goodness, and the Public Offices Election Act only states 'compare with the electoral roll' (for identity verification)," said Hayato Kojima, who heads the election system practice research association and has nearly 40 years of election management experience. "Since voter cards are enclosed in one mailing for all household members, there are instances where someone mistakenly brings a family member's card," Kojima added. Usually, voters realize their mistake, self-report and either return home to retrieve their own card or fill out a designated form to be checked against the roll and vote. What happens if a relative attempts to impersonate a voter by bringing that person's voter card without a photo ID? People have in fact attempted to vote by disguising themselves as relatives, and they have been accused of fraudulent voting in violation of the Public Offices Election Act. Kojima explained, "When matching the voter card with the electoral register, receptionists will look closely at the voter's face and confirm, 'Are you Mr./Ms. XX?' If the date of birth and apparent age are vastly different, or if they cannot state their birthdate, the person usually flees." If someone attempts to impersonate a voter, officials contact the police on the spot. Kojima warned, "It violates the Public Offices Election Act, and that will ruin their life." On social media, there are calls for mandatory ID checks to prevent fraudulent voting. However, "Requiring IDs would delay the process, making it difficult for the majority of legitimate voters to cast their ballots smoothly. Even if mandatory, fraudulent voting cannot be prevented if IDs are counterfeited," Kojima stated. "Japan's election system is world-class, and its proper execution without mandatory ID checks is a testament to the national character. I hope people are not swayed by false narratives and will go to the polls and cast their votes for their chosen candidates." (Japanese original by Moe Yamamoto, Digital News Group)
