Vote-Value Gap Tops 2 Times in 16 Japan Lower House Districts

Tokyo, July 29 (Jiji Press)--Sixteen single-seat constituencies for Japan's House of Representatives, the lower chamber of parliament, have a vote-value gap of over two times compared with the least populated district, Jiji Press estimates showed Wednesday.

The number rose from eight in 2024 and 12 in 2025, according to the estimates compiled on the basis of population data as of Jan. 1 released by the internal affairs ministry the same day.

The largest gap is 2.139 times, larger than 2.103 times in 2025.

A gap of two times is believed to be a benchmark used by Japan's Supreme Court in ruling whether Lower House elections are constitutional in terms of vote-value disparities.

The government's council on Lower House electoral districts has started work to rezone constituencies for the chamber to reduce the maximum gap to less than two times, planning to submit its proposal by May next year.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]