Japan Press Weekly

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2021 October 20 - 26 [POLITICS]

General election campaign officially begins

The general election campaign period officially commenced on October 19. The results of the October 31 voting may affect the future of the country. Japanese Communist Party candidates as well as JCP Chair Shii Kazuo and JCP Secretariat Head Koike Akira delivered kick-off speeches in their constituencies.

Near Shinjuku Station in Tokyo, Shii said, "In this election, Japanese people can 'choose a government', the present coalition setup led by the Liberal Democratic Party and the Komei Party which pays no heed to the needs and demands of the general public or a new one formed as a result of joint efforts made by opposition parties and concerned citizens which will make use of the demands behind public opinion."

Shii appealed to voters, "Your vote can change the direction of politics. Let us realize a change of government! The largest driving force to help achieve this end is an advancement of the JCP in this election." By saying this, he called on the audience and passersby to support the JCP in proportional representation constituencies.

Opposition parties are fielding a united candidate in 213 out of the 289 single-seat constituencies, creating a one-on-one battle in more than 70% of the single-seat constituencies.

The Asahi Shimbun on October 19 reported that the confrontational structure in this election battle is the LDP-Komei ruling parties versus the united opposition parties' camp centering on the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. Also, the Sankei Shimbun reported that the largest point at issue is whether to continue with the LDP-Komei coalition government or to entrust the formation of a new government to the united opposition parties.