
Tokyo Elects First Woman Governor by Landslide Over Abe Pick
August 1, 2016Author: Bloomberg & USA Today
Categories: In the News
Former environment minister Yuriko Koike will have the spotlight more than any previous woman in Japanese politics after Tokyo elected her on Sunday as the prefecture’s first female governor, Sasakawa USA’s Tobias Harris said in a Bloomberg article reporting on the election.
Tags: 2020 Olympics, bloomberg, election, governor, gubernatorial election, in the news, Japan, kirk spitzer, LDP, Liberal Democratic Party, Politics, Shinzo Abe, Tokyo, Tokyo Olympics, usa today, womenomics, yuriko koike

JPP: Abe’s support still rests on lack of alternatives; public remains ambivalent about policies
July 18, 2016Author: Tobias Harris
Categories: Japan Political Pulse
Japan’s House of Councillors elections are over, resulting in an impressive victory for the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)-Komeito coalition, which now has 147 seats in the 242-seat HOC. However, despite headlines that proclaimed Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government won a landslide victory on July 10, opinion polls conducted after the elections suggest that the vote did not fundamentally alter public opinion regarding the Abe administration and its policies.
Tags: Abe, Abenomics, coalition, constitutional revision, election, elections, house of councillors, japan political pulse, japan. economy, jpp, Komeito, LDP, Liberal Democratic Party, opinion poll, poll, public opinion, Shinzo Abe

Japan Update: Upper House Elections and Implications for the Abe Administration
July 13, 2016Date: July 13, 2016
This event brought together several Sasakawa USA experts for a special Speakers Series event to discuss results of the July 10 House of Councillors elections and what they will mean for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s administration.
Tags: Abe, Abe administration, admiral dennis blair, capitol hill, constitutional revision, election, election results, event, house of councillors, jeffrey hornung, masayuki hironaka, Sasakawa USA Speaker Series, Shinzo Abe, speaker series, tobias harris

Constitutional revision still not a sure bet despite LDP wins
July 11, 2016Author: Tobias Harris
Categories: In the News
While Japan’s ruling coalition secured victory in key parliamentary elections Sunday, that doesn’t mean constitutional revision will be an easy win for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Sasakawa USA’s Tobias Harris explained in several media outlets following the election. According to an article by Kirk Spitzer in USA Today, “Sunday’s vote was a ‘solid victory, as
Tags: constitutional revision, election, Japan, Komeito, LDP, Liberal Democratic Party, los angeles times, New York Times, Shinzo Abe, the guardian, tobias harris, usa today

President Obama’s Hiroshima Visit: How it Happened and Why No Apology was Expected in Japan
June 13, 2016Author: Tomohiko Taniguchi
Categories: View from Tokyo: Tomo Taniguchi's Take
On May 27, 2016 in Hiroshima, Japan, President Barack Obama delivered one of his best speeches ever, crafted and delivered so masterfully that it will likely leave a lasting legacy. In Hiroshima he towered above any politicking, which can easily get nasty in our less-than-ideal world, especially in an election year. What was behind his visit to Hiroshima? In retrospect many actions and events—some planned, some not—merged to pave the way for President Obama to fulfill his wish to visit Hiroshima while in office.
Tags: a view from tokyo, ambassador roos, Barack Obama, Caroline Kennedy, election, Hiroshima, john roos, joint session, Politics, president obama, Shinzo Abe, tomohiko taniguchi, World War II, yasukuni shrine