Japan's Unified Local Polls Likely to Be Highly Competitive

Tokyo, April 20 (Jiji Press)--Japanese opposition parties are seeking to bolster their presence in local assemblies, raising the possibility that unified local elections in spring next year will be highly competitive.

The Democratic Party for the People and Sanseito in particular plan to actively field candidates in the local races.

The two parties determined, after their lackluster gains in February's general election, that their local organizations needed to be bolstered so that they do not have to rely on support from unaffiliated voters.

"We need to put up at least 850 candidates," DPFP leader Yuichiro Tamaki told reporters in Kokubunji, Tokyo, on Saturday, referring to the local elections. "We will begin efforts in earnest."

At a party convention on April 5, the DPFP set a goal of increasing its number of local assembly members from around 340 currently to 700 in the unified races. The party will set candidate targets for each prefectural chapter, with efforts focused on fielding candidates in areas where there are currently no DPFP assembly members.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]