Start of Campaign Period for Iwate Upper House By-Election

The official campaign period has begun ⁣for a by-election in the Iwate ⁣prefectural constituency ⁢of the House of ⁤Councillors, Japan’s ⁢parliament. The election will be⁣ held on October ‍27th following the resignation of Megumi ‍Hirose, who was indicted for allegedly ⁣defrauding the government. ⁤The‍ ruling Liberal‌ Democratic Party‍ (LDP) has decided not to field any candidates due⁤ to ongoing criticism over money⁢ scandals. The‌ main opposition party, ⁣Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP), plans to target Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s administration during their campaign. On the⁤ same‌ day as the by-election, Japan will ‍also hold a general⁣ election for⁤ the‍ House of Representatives. These elections will be the first national⁤ polls⁣ since Ishiba took office on October 1st. Five⁢ candidates have filed⁣ their nominations for the by-election, including ‌Toshiya Yoshida from small political party Sanseito and corporate executive Yutaka Odata. Former trading ​house employee ‍Hironori Matsushima is also running, along with⁢ Eiji Kidoguchi from CDP and independent candidate Ayumi Tanaka. In the previous Upper House election​ in 2022, Kidoguchi was defeated by Hirose who ran ⁢as an LDP candidate.