<figure id="attachment_419754" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-419754" style="width: 3674px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="40e6aa40"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2025/04/cd7edce2af3d12c797914b328b79bb60.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-419754" class="wp-caption-text">Depending on the outcome of the election, Prime Minister Ishiba will be held accountable</figcaption></figure>
<h2> The overwhelming main contender in the Hyogo Pref&#8230;</h2>
<p> The House of Councillors election was announced on July 3, and the casting of ballots is imminent. The biggest question is whether the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) will be able to break the majority in the House of Councillors, but with the LDP ending up with the lowest number of seats ever in the Tokyo metropolitan assembly elections held prior to the election, the future of the LDP is in doubt. This report takes an inside look at the two wards that will be the focus of attention in the Upper House election.</p>
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<p> Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (68) has chosen the Hyogo Prefectural Constituency (with a fixed number of seats) as the site for his first speech. In this constituency, where the aftermath of the series of disturbances caused by Governor Motohiko Saito (47) is still strongly felt, Fusaho Izumi (61, independent) is seen as the overwhelming front-runner. A reporter for a local newspaper commented.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The local newspaper reporter commented, &#8220;Fusaho Izumi&#8217;s popularity is remarkable because he has captured even the conservative voters. The remaining two seats will be contested by the Liberal Democratic Party, New Komeito, the Restoration Association, the People&#8217;s Party, and the Upper House. 13 candidates will run for the seats, making this a highly competitive district. In the proportional district, all five parties, including Rikken, are expected to receive more than 10% of the vote, so it could go either way.</span></p>
<p> The situation surrounding the ruling party is difficult. Some surveys showed that LDP candidate Hiroyuki Kada, 55, is outnumbered because the conservative vote will be split by Izumi&#8217;s presence and the rise of the Upper House party. A member of the LDP&#8217;s prefectural federation sighed.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> As Prime Minister Ishiba said in his first speech in Kobe, this is a priority constituency, but he is currently outnumbered. I feel that the people of Hyogo have turned their backs on us because of our inaction in the recent rerun election for governor of Hyogo Prefecture. I feel sorry for Mr. Kada, though he is taking a must-win attitude. &#8230;&#8230;</span></p>
<p> Meanwhile, Toshitaka Yoshihei, 44, of The Japan Innovation Party, is gradually gaining support, but those involved with the party are skeptical.</p>
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<p><span class="strongInContent"> The problems with Governor Saito and the resulting defections of some members of the Ishin no Kai, including some prefectural assembly members, have had a negative impact,&#8221; said a source close to the Ishin no Kai. Kichihira&#8217;s support is growing, probably because he is a young man and his policies of lowering social insurance premiums and regulating the acceptance of foreigners have stuck with the people of the prefecture.</span></p>
<p> NHK Party leader Takashi Tachibana, 57, who did not seek election himself but supported Governor Saito in the recent Hyogo Prefecture gubernatorial election, is also running for governor, but some people say, &#8220;If Mr. Tachibana is elected as Hyogo governor, he will have the support of the people of Hyogo Prefecture.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> If Mr. Tachibana plays the same role as in the Hyogo gubernatorial election, it will be the Liberal Democratic Party and the Restoration Association that will suffer the brunt. If this happens, the people will have the possibility of a fishing expedition. Given the precedent set in the past, the influence exerted by Tachibana cannot be ignored.&#8221;</span></p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Within the LDP, &quot;A sterile internal debate...&quot;"></div>
<h2>Osaka Constituency in Chaos</h2>
<p> The Osaka Prefectural Constituency, which borders Hyogo Prefecture, is another hotly contested district with 19 candidates vying for the four seats up for election.</p>
<p> With candidates from nine national political parties in the mix, and musician Masanori Sera, 69, announcing his candidacy, there is no shortage of topics of conversation. The Japan Innovation Party&#8217;s Rie Sasaki, 42, is leading the pack according to preliminary surveys and other data, but there is a backstory.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> She said, &#8220;Defending the two seats is the most important issue. However, both of the two candidates this time are from the Osaka City Council. We have a strong prefectural assembly, and there are some prefectural assembly members who do not like the idea of an imbalance of power, so we are not a monolithic group.</span></p>
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<p> The Liberal Democratic Party, New Komeito, and the People&#8217;s Party of Japan are all chasing the Restoration Party, which has a one-step lead, but the situation is difficult to predict since there are so many different parties in the race. However, even the LDP, which would normally be the frontrunner in the race, has had its own family turmoil.</p>
<p> A report in NEWS POST SEVEN revealed that Fusae Ota, 74, an incumbent who had expressed interest in running for office, had allegedly offered financial support to local lawmakers in return for their help in the election. Perhaps due to this, he eventually announced his decision not to run for office, while denying all allegations. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) approved Akira Yanagimoto, 51, to run.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The LDP approved Akira Yanagimoto, 51. &#8220;There had been whispers within the party for some time that Mr. Ota was allegedly handing out money. When the party was in the process of selecting a candidate, the voices became louder and louder, and then it was reported that another candidate was also handing out money, and the situation became unsettled.</span></p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> In other words, the issue surrounding Mr. Ota was a sterile domestic dispute. With the momentum of the Restoration Party declining, the party should have united to face the election, but it is far from being in such a state. What on earth are they doing?</span></p>
<p> With the Restoration Party, the Liberal Democratic Party, and the New Komeito all favored to secure seats, the remaining one slot is up for grabs among the KMT, the LDP, the Restoration Party, and the Communist Party, all by a narrow margin. Any result would not be surprising.</p>
<p> These are two hotly contested districts with a variety of agendas. What is clear from this Upper House election is that from the perspective of the people, who are suffering from high prices, the importance will not be placed on intra-party skirmishes, but on policies that directly affect their daily lives.</p>
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 Takeshi Kinugawa

 The House of Councillors elections were announced on July 3, and the counting of ballots is now underway. With headwinds blowing against the Liberal Democratic Party, we report on the inside story of the two districts in Hyogo and Osaka that are attracting attention.

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