<figure id="attachment_298248" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 859px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-298248"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="5520136d"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/03/aba1dd9afd994bc383f5259806be7bb4.png" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-298248" class="wp-caption-text">Eiri (left), whom the LDP has decided to retain. He is a former United Nations official and is fluent in five languages (image from his Instagram).</figcaption></figure>
The LDP has decided to field Eiri (left), a former UN official who is fluent in five languages (image from his Instagram).
Kentaro Sonoura, 50, a former member of the House of Representatives, who was considered a close ally of Taro Aso, 82, vice president of the Chiba Prefectural Assembly, resigned after being summarily indicted on charges of violating the Political Funds Control Law for understating his income totaling approximately 46 million yen. This supplementary election will be held accordingly.
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The opposition parties are Junko Okano, 44, a member of the Urayasu City Council, the Democratic Party of Japan; Kentaro Yazaki, 55, a former prefectural assembly member, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan; Kazuko Saito, 48, a former member of the House of Representatives, the Communist Party; and Tomoyasu Kishino, 28, the Japan Innovation Party. The LDP does not boast an overwhelming majority in Chiba&#8217;s 5th Constituency, and the opposition parties have been in a state of flurry of activity.
However, there is a strong feeling within the opposition that the LDP cannot win if the situation continues as is. What does this mean? A mid-level member of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) said with a sigh.
 The Chiba 5th Constituency is an area where the opposition parties can win seats if they cooperate with each other. That is why Kenta Izumi, the representative of the Rikken Democratic Party, is breathing heavily. He is very determined to win the 5th Constituency no matter what it takes! He is very enthusiastic. However, to be honest, our former prefectural assemblyman Yazaki is weak as a &#8220;ball. At first, we were looking into the possibility of putting up a united candidate as an opposition party, but there was no one within the prefectural federation with the ability to coordinate, and negotiations with the other parties quickly broke down. The situation is frustrating because the LDP will win if things continue as they are,&#8221; said a veteran KDP secretary.
A veteran secretary of the KDP also commented.
 A veteran secretary of the KDP also commented, &#8220;Rikken is hardening his attitude because we ran our own candidate in the last Upper House election. We will probably go into the election as it is.
A veteran secretary of the National Democratic Party of Japan also revealed his feelings about the situation. A member of the Chiba Restoration Association also commented
 &#8220;There will be no cooperation or coordination with a view to the nationwide local elections,&#8221; a member of the Chiba Restoration Party asserted.
The opposition parties are moving in disparate directions.
The LDP has the upper hand because of the disjointed moves of the opposition parties.
However, this does not necessarily mean that the LDP is solid. An official of the LDP&#8217;s Chiba Prefectural Federation revealed that dissatisfaction has erupted in the process of selecting candidates.
 The LDP&#8217;s former member Sonoura, who resigned, was one of Mr. Aso&#8217;s closest confidants and a core member of the Aso faction,&#8221; said an official of the LDP&#8217;s Chiba Prefectural Federation. At first, there was an atmosphere within the party headquarters that a member of the Aso faction would be assigned to the 5th Constituency out of consideration for Mr. Aso. However, for some reason, the prefectural federation decided to recruit from the public in order to ensure fairness. In fact, there were 72 applicants, but some people within the federation said, &#8220;It&#8217;s a race anyway. Why bother to have an open application process?
On February 10, the Chiba Prefectural Federation narrowed the field down to 10 candidates, and on February 21, it decided to field Eiri Alfiya, 34, a former United Nations official. The decision to select him was based on the presence of a major politician.
 He was strongly backed by Digital Minister Taro Kono, who is also a junior at Georgetown University in the United States. He is widely known within the party to be fond of Eiri, who is also a junior at Georgetown University in the U.S. Based on his age (34 years old), his background as a UN official, and his command of five languages, he praised him unreservedly, saying, &#8216;Eiri is an internationally active candidate. Other candidates were mentioned, but in the end, Mr. Kono pushed for the nomination of Mr. Eiri, who has no connection to Chiba.
In last year&#8217;s Upper House election, Mr. Eiri ran for the national proportional ticket, but fell short of the election line. While there are high expectations for Mr. Eiri, who has an outstanding record, there are also many who are concerned about him. A veteran secretary of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) revealed the following.
 Mr. Eiri&#8217;s parents are from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, but his political beliefs are a mystery to many. It is also puzzling that Taro Kono, who has always been close to China, pushed him strongly for the position. Some members of the Diet questioned the decision to retain him in terms of information management.
The opposition parties are unable to come to a consensus, and the LDP is unable to find its footing. Who will the Chiba voters choose?

 The LDP is fielding a "beautiful 34-year-old candidate" for the Chiba 5th Constituency by-election to be held on April 23. Kentaro Sonoura, 50, a former member of the House of Representatives and a close ally of Taro Aso, 82, has been accused of violating the Political Funds Control Law by understating his income totaling approximately 46 million yen.

Taro Kono pushes hard…! Why did the LDP field a “beautiful 34-year-old candidate” for the Chiba 5th Constituency?

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