Major parties other than JIP to skip Osaka double election

Major political parties other than the Japan Innovation Party are expected to not participate in the upcoming double election for the governor of Osaka Prefecture and the mayor of Osaka, the prefecture's capital.

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party's (LDP) Osaka prefectural chapter decided Saturday not to field candidates in the gubernatorial and mayoral races.

At a news conference, Rui Matsukawa, head of the LDP Osaka chapter, questioned the move by Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura, leader of the JIP, and Osaka Mayor Hideyuki Yokoyama to resign in order to hold fresh elections in an effort to revive a plan to reform Osaka's administrative structure.

"I wonder if a sudden election can reflect public opinion," Matsukawa said. "It will be an election in which we don't need to participate."

A political group affiliated with the Japanese Communist Party has also decided not to field candidates in the double election.

The prefectural branches of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and Komeito also plan to skip the election.