Osaka Governor, Mayor to Face Elections over Metropolis Plan

Newsfrom Japan

Society

Jan 15, 2026 23:35 (JST)

Osaka, Jan. 15 (Jiji Press)–Osaka Governor Hirofumi Yoshimura and Osaka Mayor Hideyuki Yokoyama announced Thursday their intention to tender their resignations the following day and run in subsequent elections, in a bid to realize the so-called Osaka metropolis plan for local government realignment.

They will position the gubernatorial and mayoral races in the western Japan prefecture as a plebiscite to seek public approval for the metropolis plan, a signature policy of the Japan Innovation Party, which is led by Yoshimura.

The elections are expected to be held on the same day as a possible general election for the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of Japan’s parliament, whose voting date is widely believed to be set for Feb. 8.

“I want to run in a double election with Mayor Yokoyama,” Yoshimura told a meeting of Osaka Ishin no Kai, a regional political party linked to the JIP, which was held in the city of Osaka.

At a press conference later in the day, the governor explained that he decided on the move because he “determined that the metropolitan plan is needed for Osaka’s further growth.”

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]

Jiji Press