Tokyo Governor's Political Ambition Could Affect Olympics

(ATR) A week of politicking and opinion polls could hold the answer to the political fate of Tokyo Metropolitan Governor Yuriko Koike.

Koike has until Oct. 10 to decide if she will relinquish her position as governor and run for national parliament. Last week Koike announced that she would remain in charge of her newly created "Party of Hope". The announcement came the same day that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called for a snap election on Oct. 22, and led to speculation about a national run for Koike.

A recent opinion poll from TV Asahi said that 72 percent of respondents reacted negatively to her running for parliament. However, another poll from NHK showed only 37 percent support for Abe, whose party holds a super-majority in Japan’s parliament. Another factor for Koike is the decision by the failed Democratic Party, the main opposition party in parliament, to run all candidates under the Party of Hope.

Koike was a member of the House of Representatives from 1993 to 2016 before leaving to run for Tokyo Governor. She won the governorship last July and immediately began to remake the plan for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Koike set out to reduce costs for the Games, leading to multilateral talks with the IOC, Tokyo 2020, the TMG, and the national government. Talks began in late 2016 and lasted until the end of May with the presentation of new budget.

Tokyo 2020 chief executive Toshiro Muto told the Financial Times in an interview he would prefer if Koike "[devoted] all of her efforts to making a success of the Tokyo Olympics," instead of running for parliament.

"Only God knows who will win this election," Muto said. "[Her new] party was announced at the last minute but it shows Governor Koike’s power of communication — you cannot make light of it."

Koike has not shied away from her ambition to become the first ever female prime minister of Japan. A recent report from Reuters took note that the governor’s dog is named "Sori," which translates to "Premier."

If Koike were to secure a spot in the Japanese Parliament and her party to lead the next government, Koike would hold significant sway in Olympic preparations. As part of the new budget presented, the federal government is responsible for a quarter of the Paralympic budget, delivering the new National Stadium, and implementing obligations including security and anti-doping measures. Koike’s cabinet would almost certainly include a new Olympics minister.

Speculation over Koike's political future are coming as an IOC project review is in town from Oct. 3-4.

Whether a Koike run happens could depend on the political temperature in the next week and her party’s prospects in the upcoming election. Tomoaki Iwai, professor of Japanese politics at Nippon University told the Japan Times that if the Party of Hope was projected to win "20 to 30 seats," it could prompt Koike to run. Such a gain would "tip the balance of power" in the government, the report said.

Longtime political ally Masaru Wakasa said in a debate on NHK that it is not imperative for Koike to run in this election.

"If there is a firm prospect of a change in government, party chief Koike might run for parliament," Wakasa said as quoted by Reuters. "If we can achieve a change in the ‘next, next’ election, she doesn’t have to run now."

Written by Aaron Bauer

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