Devi Fujin Softens Candidacy Statement After Surprise from ItteQ and Advertisers

As soon as she declared her candidacy, the penalty for breach of contract skyrocketed to an astronomical figure

Talent Mrs. Devi (85) held a press conference in Tokyo on February 12, where she announced the launch of the new party “12 (Wan-Nyan) Peace Party” ahead of the summer House of Councillors election and declared her candidacy.

The “12 Peace Party” is based on the idea of protecting dogs and cats and aiming for coexistence with humanity, with Mrs. Devi taking on the role of leader. The party plans to field more than 10 candidates.

“The election strategy committee chairman is election planner Shinji Ishimaru, who created a buzz in last year’s Tokyo gubernatorial election. They are preparing in a very serious way for the election. Mrs. Devi, who currently holds Indonesian citizenship, has also declared that she will acquire Japanese citizenship and run in the House of Councillors election,” said a sports reporter.

Her sudden announcement of launching a new party and entering politics has surprised not only the public but also those close to her.

“Actually, the first contact we received about the election came just a few days before the press release announcing the new party’s establishment on February 7,” said an advertising agency insider.

“At that time, the formation of the new party was discussed, but we hadn’t heard that Mrs. Devi herself would run. We were shocked when we heard the announcement at the press conference. Whether someone runs for election or not involves political neutrality issues, so the response afterward will change significantly. The sponsor companies are also surprised and are currently figuring out how to proceed.”

Mrs. Devi is currently featured in various advertisements, including for UHA Mikakuto, the buyout store ‘Manekiya,’ and the client referral service Saleshub.

A similar situation with talent running for election and the penalties for breaking contracts with CM sponsors brings to mind Junichi Ishida (71), who ran in the 2016 Tokyo gubernatorial election.

“When Ishida announced his candidacy for the gubernatorial election, he mentioned on ‘Downtown DX’ (NTV) that he was asked to pay astronomical penalties for CM contracts and TV appearances. In the end, he dropped out of the race, and of the 10 sponsoring companies, 9 waived the fees. However, one company still demanded a penalty of 10 million yen, and he later revealed in an interview with ‘Weekly Shincho’ that he sold his Ferrari to cover the costs. If Mrs. Devi runs for the House of Councillors election as declared, it’s inevitable that she will be asked to pay a huge penalty,” said a wide-show insider.

When asked about future involvement or penalties regarding Mrs. Devi’s contract with Saleshub, the company responded:

“Regarding your inquiry, we are currently verifying the facts and will decide on how to proceed after consulting with the relevant parties.”

“If I am able to obtain Japanese citizenship, I will officially consider it.”

When it comes to elections, the impact is not limited to just commercials but also television programs. Mrs. Devi is famously known for her appearances on “Sekai no Hate Made Itte Q!” (NTV), and according to a network insider:

“It seems that there are no completed recordings at the moment, so there won’t be any shelved or edited out segments. However, there were plans for a location shoot around spring, which will likely be canceled now.”

It was revealed that during the process of launching her new party, Mrs. Devi had received advice from lawyers to consult with sponsors and television stations early on. However, she did not take the matter seriously enough, and ultimately, the television stations and advertising agencies were only notified right before the press release was sent. After the press conference, Mrs. Devi’s office was flooded with inquiries from people related to the commercials and programs, and the office was in a rush to respond. Despite this, Mrs. Devi’s determination to run for election is genuine, and her office staff, motivated to support her, has been explaining the situation to various parties to calm the confusion.

When we sent an inquiry to Mrs. Devi’s office regarding the notification of her new party’s establishment to sponsors, advertising agencies, and television stations, but the omission of her candidacy, Mrs. Devi responded in handwriting:

“Currently, I am considering candidacy, and regarding the nationality issue (if I can obtain Japanese citizenship), I will officially consider it.”

This response gives a somewhat toned-down impression compared to the press conference. She confirmed the last-minute notification with:

“Yes, that’s correct.”

As for discussions with sponsors and television stations, she stated:

“At present, they are quietly keeping silent, offering support and words of encouragement, wishing me well” (as written).

When asked at the press conference whether her candidacy would impact her programs and commercials, Mrs. Devi responded:

“If there are television stations that don’t want to be involved with politics, I understand.”

The question remains: will her determination resonate with voters?