Shinji Ishimaru Expresses Concern Over Reduced Influence with Same-Generation Prime Ministers
Just when we thought the Paris Olympics were over, now Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has decided not to run in the party leadership election, and Nagatacho has plunged into political turmoil. In the midst of this, what is being forgotten is Shinji Ishimaru, who became the ‘eye of the storm’ in the Tokyo gubernatorial election held on July 7.
On social media, there are voices like:
“By the way, I haven’t seen [him].”
“Is he already a thing of the past?”
“The trend changes so quickly.”
He gained over 1.65 million votes, coming in second after Governor Yuriko Koike, and suddenly became a prominent figure.
What caused controversy was the post-election interview.
In a report interview immediately after his defeat, Shinji Ishimaru failed to connect at all with sociologist Norihito Furuichi, who appeared on a special election program on NTV. On Fuji TV’s ‘Mr. Sunday,’ he treated interviewer Rena Yamazaki, a former member of Nogizaka46, as an ‘amateur,’ which drew criticism.
On the other hand, he appeared on the evening variety show ‘All Night Fujiko’ (Fuji TV) and in videos by gaming YouTubers, showing a more comedic side. A sports newspaper entertainment reporter,
“He is hard to grasp. Normally, he is friendly and widely recognized as a good young man. However, his character changes depending on the media or program. It’s all calculated, but it’s unclear what he’s really thinking.”
Remarked.
The ‘unknown presence’ became popular and continued to be featured after the gubernatorial election, but recently, exposure has clearly decreased.
