2016 Kyoto 3rd district by-election

A by-election for the Kyoto-3rd seat in the Japanese House of Representatives was held on 24 April 2016, coinciding with the by-election in Hokkaido. The seat became vacant after sitting member Kensuke Miyazaki resigned on 12 February 2016 in the midst of an extramarital affair scandal.[1] Miyazaki, a member of the Liberal Democratic Party, served the district from 2012. He defeated Democratic Party MP Kenta Izumi by slim margins in the 2012 (0.1%) and 2014 (2.7%) elections.

2016 Kyoto 3rd district by-election
24 April 2016
Kyoto 3rd district
Turnout30.12%
 
Nominee Kenta Izumi Natsue Mori Yukiko Ono
Party Democratic Ishin Japanese Kokoro
Popular vote 65,051 20,710 6,449
Percentage 65.42% 20.83% 6.49%
 
Nominee Masafumi Tabuchi Mitsuko Ōyagi Akihiko Kōri
Party Independent Happiness Realization Independent
Popular vote 4,599 2,247 370
Percentage 4.63% 2.26% 0.37%
Representative before election

Kensuke Miyazaki
Liberal Democratic

 Elected Representative

Kenta Izumi
Democratic

Izumi managed to wrest back his old seat by a landslide, eclipsing his nearest rival by 45 percentage points.[2][3]

Outline

The district had 344,696 registered voters for the election, an increase of 0.12% since the 2014 general election.[4] As the voting age for national elections was decreased to 18 years in June 2016,[5] this by-election, along with the Hokkaido by-election, were the last national-level election with a minimum voting age of 20 years. The by-elections were the first national-level elections contested by the Democratic Party, Initiatives from Osaka party and Party for Japanese Kokoro under their respective current names.[6] The Communist Party also chose not to field a candidate in the election, despite receiving 27,000 votes (16%) in the 2014 election.[6]

Dates
  • 16 March 2016 - Date of election announced
  • 12 April 2016 - List of candidates published[7]
  • 13–23 April - Early-voting polling booths open[8]
  • 24 April 2016 - Polling day[7]

Candidates

The by-election was a six-way race. The LDP decided against fielding a candidate due to the perceived anti-LDP sentiment in light of the Miyazaki scandal.[9] Party bosses were also worried that a heavy defeat in Kyoto might affect LDP's campaign for the House of Councillors election in summer.[10][11]

Candidates[6]
  Party for Japanese Kokoro Yukiko Ono Endorsed by the New Renaissance Party[6]
  Independent Masafumi Tabuchi
  Happiness Realization Party Mitsuko Ōyagi
  Initiatives from Osaka Natsue Mori
  Democratic Kenta Izumi Endorsed by the Social Democratic Party.[6]
Representative of the district for three terms (2003-2012). Lost the district in 2012 and 2014 but remained in the House via the Kinki PR block.
  Independent Akihiro Kōri

Results
House of Representatives: Kyoto 3rd district by-election, 2016[12][13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Democratic Kenta Izumi 65,051 65.42 32.31
Ishin Natsue Mori 20,710 20.83 5.82
Japanese Kokoro Yukiko Ono 6,449 6.49 N/A
Independent Masafumi Tabuchi 4,599 4.63 N/A
Happiness Realization Mitsuko Ōyagi 2,247 2.26 N/A
Independent Akihiko Kōri 370 0.37 N/A
Rejected ballots 4,224 4.08
Majority 44,341 44.59 42.8
Turnout 103,650[14] 30.12
Democratic gain from Liberal Democratic Swing N/A

Note:
1 The percentage swing for the Democratic Party candidate is calculated based on the vote share obtained by its predecessor, DPJ.
2 The percentage swing for the Initiatives from Osaka candidate is calculated based on the vote share obtained by its predecessor, Japan Innovation Party.

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References
  1. "Paternity leave trailblazer Miyazaki quits over affair". Japan Times. 12 February 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  2. "京都３区補選 民進 泉健太氏が当選" [Kyoto 3rd district by-election: Democratic Party's Kenta Izumi has been elected] (in Japanese). NHK. 24 April 2016. Archived from the original on 24 April 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  3. "LDP-backed candidate Wada projected to win seat in Hokkaido by-election". Japan Times. 24 April 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  4. "選挙人名簿登録者数　増減比較表" [Registered voters comparison table] (PDF) (in Japanese). 11 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  5. "選挙権年齢の満１８歳以上への引下げ" [Voting age lowered to 18 years] (in Japanese). Kyoto Prefecture. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  6. "衆院京都３区補選、６人の争い確定" [Kyoto 3rd by election confirmed as 6-person race] (in Japanese). Kyoto Shimbun. 12 April 2016. Archived from the original on 25 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  7. "京都府広報" [Kyoto Prefecture Gazette] (PDF) (in Japanese). Kyoto Prefecture. 12 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  8. "衆議院京都府第３区選出議員補欠選挙　期日前投票所に使用する施設について" [Concerning pre-polling locations for the Kyoto 3rd district by-election] (PDF) (in Japanese). Kyoto Prefecture. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  9. "Hokkaido and Kyoto by-election campaigns, measure of Abe's strength, get underway". Japan Times. 12 April 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  10. "LDP decides not to field candidate for by-election in Kyoto". Mainichi Shimbun. 28 February 2016. Archived from the original on 23 April 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  11. "Hokkaido, Kyoto by-elections a test for both DP and LDP". Japan Times. 7 April 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  12. "開票結了速報" [Preliminary final results] (PDF) (in Japanese). Kyoto Prefecture. 24 April 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  13. "衆院京都３区補選" [House of Representatives - Kyoto 3rd district by-election] (in Japanese). NHK. 24 April 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  14. "選挙当日の有権者数、投票者数及び投票率に関する調 ［投票結了］" [Number of voters on election day and turnout (post-election report)] (PDF) (in Japanese). Kyoto Prefecture. 24 April 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
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