Recent wins in local elections should lead to an advance in Upper House election: JCP Ichida

Japan Press Weekly

Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

Recent wins in local elections should lead to an advance in Upper House election: JCP Ichida

Japanese Communist Party Secretariat Head Ichida Tadayoshi said to reporters on February 22 that the JCP has done well in recent local elections, and that the party will strive for a further advance in local elections and the House of Councilors election.

In the Hino City Assembly election on February 21 in Tokyo, all five JCP incumbents were reelected. The JCP got the highest ratio of votes. In the Machida City Assembly election in Tokyo on the same day, all five candidates were elected, while three of 10 candidates from the Democratic Party of Japan were defeated and the Liberal Democratic Party decreased its seats to 6 from 8.

Ichida also stressed that in rural regions the party also won greater support, including that from other party supporters and independent voters, referring to the the fact that a JCP candidate won in the election to fill three vacancies in the Sosa City Assembly in Chiba Prefecture on February 7. The JCP candidate received 4,919 votes, or 5.36 times more than the votes cast for the JCP in 2009 general election.

In the Nagahama City Assembly election on February 14 in Shiga Prefecture, a JCP candidate won a one-on-one fight with a conservative rival in the former Kohoku Town which merged with the city. The JCP got 60.3 percent of the votes, a fivefold increase from the 2009 general election. Driving the campaign, previously conservative people including the former town assembly chair, vice-chair, and leaders of senior people’s clubs openly supported the JCP.

Ichida said, “The JCP has obtained positive results in all local elections in February. The target of the number of votes set by the JCP, however, has not been achieved in many districts. We should face up to this reality and work to increase the number of votes and seats steadily in future local elections, aiming for a victory in the coming House of Councilors election.”

- Akahata, February 23, 2010