Tomohiro Yara wins Okinawa No. 3 district Lower House by-election with platform opposing new Henoko base
Tomohiro Yara (third from the right in the front row) and his supporters cheer over his victory in the Okinawa No. 3 district by-election at 8:05 p.m. on April 21 in Ageda, Okinawa City.
April 21, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo
Tomohiro Yara, 56, is a freelance journalist and a new independent candidate in the Lower House by-election in the Okinawa No. 3 district backed by the “All Okinawa” camp.
He won in the by-election held on April 21 after Denny Tamaki resigned the seat in his successful bid in the Okinawa gubernatorial race.
The vote was closed at 8:00 p.m. on April 21 and the votes were counted on the same day.
Constituents in the Okinawa No. 3 district chose Yara, a candidate who opposes construction of the new Henoko base.
This means that the prefectural people, who voted similarly in the September gubernatorial election last year and the prefectural referendum held in February this year, have once again expressed no confidence in the Abe administration pushing forward with land reclamation work in Henoko.
Another new candidate, Aiko Shimajiri, 54, also ran for the seat, endorsed by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party as well as the Komei and Ishin parties.
Shimajiri is a former Upper House member who served as Minister of State for Okinawa and Northern Territories Affairs, yet she did not take the seat.
In the race Yara was challenged to overcome his low profile.
He emphasized that he is the successor of Governor Tamaki, which increased support from voters throughout the constituency.
He stressed his opposition to the planned relocation of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan to Henoko in Nago, which was the main focal point of the race, and called for base-related risk removal by dispersing base facilities to places outside of Okinawa.
Yara promised to block construction of the new Henoko base as an elected Diet member of an Okinawan constituency.
His victory will be a tailwind for the Tamaki prefectural government administration and it has given momentum to the All Okinawa camp, which is working toward the Upper House election in the summer.
In the by-election in the Okinawa No. 3 district, there were fierce debates over several issues including measures to solve children’s poverty problems, the Okinawa Promotion of Special Measures Law as a guideline for the Okinawa promotion, and what the next Okinawa Promotion plan should look like.
(English translation by T&CT)
Previous Article:Futenma noise pollution lawsuit monetary award lowered over 30% in appeal ruling
Next Article:Citizen group files lawsuit against Japan, arguing ruling that overturned land reclamation permission revocation “illegal”
[Similar Articles]
- Anti-US base candidates win all seats in Okinawa in Lower House election
- Anti-US base at Henoko candidate Iha wins massive victory defeating state minister Shimajiri in Upper House election
- Newly elected Lower House member Tomohiro Yara attends first Diet session
- Base-Opposing Takara wins House of Councillors Election, bolstering the momentum of Okinawa’s anti-base contingent
- Okinawa District’s 4 Lower House Parliamentary Elections go 3-1 in favor of opposition parties, with Akamine, Nishime, Tamaki, and Teruya winning seats
Webcam(Kokusai Street)
