Japan Press Weekly

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2022 December 7 - 13 TOP3 [POLITICS]

Shiokawa: Legal restraints on running for public office and campaigning are too strict in Japan

Japanese Communist Party representative Shiokawa Tetsuya on December 7 said that various restrictions on candidacy and election campaigning the Public Offices Election Act imposes are a serious problem from the standpoint of democracy and the guarantee of people's suffrage.

The House of Representatives Special Committee on Political Ethics and Election Law on the same day held an open debate on election campaign.

Shiokawa on behalf of the JCP argued that the high deposit requirement for candidacy (3-6 million yen for national elections) hinders the exercise of the people's right to hold office, and proposed that the deposit system be abolished or at least be made more affordable for people who wish to run for public office.

He also proposed that the age eligibility to run for office (over 25 years old) be lowered in order to encourage the participation of more young people in politics.

The Public Offices Election Act sets the allowed period of campaigning for election (12-17 days for national elections) and prohibits election campaigning in the period other than as set force by law. The law also prohibits door-to-door canvassing in addition to the use of documents, posters, brochures, and handbills with the name of candidates included, except for officially designated ones, once the campaign period starts.

Shiokawa pointed out that this level of restrictions is extremely rare from an international viewpoint and that voters at present cannot adequately compare candidates' campaign pledges.

He underscored the need to drastically review the Public Offices Election Act so that the people as sovereign members of the country can be better informed to choose their own representatives and take part in politics and elections more proactively.