Political Institutions and Partisan Power in Japanese Local Politics

Who holds power in Japanese local politics? This chapter investigates the complexities of local governance in Japan, focusing on the interaction between political heads and local assemblies, with particular attention to the long-term dominant Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). It examines how electoral campaigns, political strategies, and the legislative framework, as influenced by the political system, result in a practice where the LDP’s dominance in councils markedly affects the political heads. Although Japan’s local government is often equated with a presidential system with a strong political head, this chapter reveals dynamics more akin to a parliamentary system with an influential local council. In this context, the analysis explores the rise of the Osaka Restoration Association (ORA) and the LDP’s fragmentation in gubernatorial elections to identify the causes of these remarkable development.