April 8, 2019

Independent candidates, supported by a broad range of Osaka voters and Japanese Communist Party members who called for putting an end to "Ishin no Kai"-controlled Osaka and to the "Ishin no Kai" attempt to create an Osaka metropolis, put up a good fight but failed to win in the Osaka gubernatorial and mayoral elections on April 7.

Head of the "Ishin no Kai" Matsui Ichiro, former Osaka governor, and "Ishin no Kai" executive Yoshimura Hirofumi, former Osaka City mayor, were elected as the city mayor and Osaka governor, respectively.

Asked for comments by the press corps, JCP Secretariat Head Koike Akira on the evening of the same day said, "Under the slogan of putting a stop to the Osaka metropolis scheme and to the 'Ishin no Kai' Osaka administration, the JCP gave support to Konishi Tadakazu in the governor race and to Yanagimoto Akira in the mayor race. This in itself had great significance. I'd like to thank all campaigners and supporters who tirelessly worked for the victory of the two candidates under this slogan."

Konishi and Yanagimoto ran in the elections as independents backed by the Liberal Democratic Party, the Komei Party in Osaka, and the largest trade union in Osaka. The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and the Democratic Party for the People voluntarily supported the two candidates together with the JCP.

During the election campaign, Konishi criticized the "Ishin no Kai"-led Osaka administration. He also promised a free school lunch program. Yanagimoto pledged to settle the confrontation and division among Osaka citizens over the metropolitan Osaka scheme, calling for doing away with the "Ishin no Kai" dictatorship and restoring Osaka citizens' autonomy.

Past related article:
> Double elections for governor and mayor will take place in Osaka [March 9, 2019]