1999 Tokyo gubernatorial election

The 1999 Tokyo gubernatorial election were held on April 11, 1999 as part of the 14th unified local elections. Incumbent Yukio Aoshima announced that he would not seek re-election. All major candidates ran as independents but several were supported by major parties. The Liberal Democratic Party, led by Secretary General Yoshiro Mori, supported Yasushi Akashi as a compromise with coalition partner New Komeito, but local LDP legislators divided their support between candidates Ishihara, Masuzoe and Kakizawa.

1999 Tokyo gubernatorial election

← 1995April 11, 19992003 →
Turnout57.87%
 
Shintarō Ishihara 2003.jpg
Kunio Hatoyama 200809.jpg
CandidateShintarō IshiharaKunio Hatoyama
PartyIndependentIndependent
Popular vote1,664,558851,130
Percentage30.47%15.58%

Governor before election

Yukio Aoshima
Independent

Elected Governor

Shintarō Ishihara
Independent

Author and former Diet member Shintaro Ishihara, who had previously come in second in the 1975 gubernatorial election against incumbent governor Ryokichi Minobe,[1] won the election on a nationalist platform, saying that he would have the United States return Yokota Air Base to Japan and clarify its position on Japan's ownership of the Senkaku Islands. Akashi came in fourth, the poorest showing by an LDP-supported candidate in Tokyo history.[2]

Results

Gubernatorial election 1999: Tokyo
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
IndependentShintarō Ishihara1,664,55830.47%
DPJ, TSN, Kaikaku ClubKunio Hatoyama851,13015.58%
IndependentYōichi Masuzoe836,10415.30%
LDP, NKYasushi Akashi690,30812.63%
JCPMitsuru Mikami661,88112.11%
IndependentKōji Kakizawa632,05411.57%
IndependentYoshirō Nakamatsu100,1231.83%
Turnout5,510,04257.87%+7.2%
  • Note: Excludes twelve other candidates, none of whom received more than 0.3% of total votes.

References