Young and Conservative Candidate Won Okinawa Governor Election

Former deputy mayor of Naha city, Genta Koja, achieved a landslide victory in gubernatorial election of Okinawa voted on September 13th. Koja won against incumbent governor, Denny Tamaki, with a wide margin. While Tamaki maintained his governorship with firm protest against building military base in Henoko, voters in Okinawa chose reconciliation with the national government. The election changed structure of politics in Okinawa. 

Koja, 42, is going to assume the governor as the first person born after return of governance of Okinawa from the United States to Japan in 1972. As a young politician who experienced staff of Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication, Koja appealed voters to change the course of Okinawa, which had been opposing to national government, with economic agenda. With support from the Liberal Democratic Party, Japan Innovation Party and Democratic party for the People, he promised the voters doubling income of each family in Okinawa.

 

Tamaki did not accept recommendations from any party. The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Japan Communist Party and Okinawa Social Mass Party gave Tamaiki voluntary support. While he had been earned wide support with his policy not to accept military base in Okinawa in two previous elections, Tamaki did not discuss this issue in the campaign this year, considering negative impact of public reluctancy to years-long dispute against national government.

 

As the governor, Tamaki protested unilateral construction of Henoko base by national government, for which approval of the governor required. The national government sued Tamaki with charge of defying request of national government and the court concluded that Tamaki needed to accept it. The national government unilaterally started construction of Henoko base without consent of governor of Okinawa.

 

However, the people in Okinawa were tired of prolonged dispute between Okinawa and Tokyo. While the most important issue of Okinawa gubernatorial election was construction of the base in 2022, it was replaced by economic development this time. All Okinawa, a political group with wide wing from conservative to liberal, did not work for Tamaki. It is likely that Okinawa’s concerted movement against the national government faces a serious setback.

 

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi welcomed Koja’s victory, indicating economic support for Okinawa by accumulating national budget for Okinawa. The national government is expected to request designation of some ports and airports in Okinawa for military use in contingency, which Tamaki has rejected for years. It is likely that Takaichi administration will spend budget for Okinawa to enhance defense capability in southeast Japan.

 

The cause for building the base in Henoko is to remove danger of U.S. Futenma Air Base by relocating it to Henoko. Koja demands the national government to disclose when Futenma base will be returned to Okinawa. He expects that the base will be returned to Okinawa one or two years after Futenma Air Base will move to Henoko in mid-2030s.

 

However, the national government is reluctant to say when it will be returned. This gap between Koja and national government may cause difficulty in Koja’s management of politics in Okinawa. U.S. Department of Defense once arguedthat Futenma will not be returned until alternative base with certain length of runway is offered.

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