Abe Wins 5th Term as Nagano Governor

Nagano, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)–Shuichi Abe won a fifth term as governor of the central Japan prefecture of Nagano in an election Sunday, defeating his sole contender. Abe, 65, won support mainly from prefectural assembly members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the major opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. He also received backing from the Nagano regional branch of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation, the umbrella organization for labor unions in Japan known as Rengo. Abe won 573,742 votes, far ahead of 92,366 votes garnered by Ryosuke Takeda, 46, a former member of the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of the Diet, the country’s parliament, who was recommended by the Japanese Communist Party. Voter turnout fell to a record low of 40.53 pct from 40.94 pct in the previous election in 2022. Abe advocated for “investment in the future,” including education and the economy, while Takeda called for launching measures to counter inflation and improving medical and public transportation services. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]