TOKYO – Lawyers on Monday filed lawsuits at high courts across Japan seeking to nullify the results of Sunday’s House of Representatives election, arguing it was unconstitutional as it was conducted without correcting vote weight disparities.
The disparity in the weight of votes between the most and least populated single-seat constituencies was 2.10-fold in the latest election, according to Kyodo News’ preliminary calculation.
The suits were filed at courts including the Akita branch of the Sendai High Court and the Osaka High Court. The Supreme Court is expected to issue a unified decision after those courts hand down rulings, possibly by March 2027.
“Equality in the weight of votes is an essential principle of the Constitution,” said lawyer Naofumi Ogawa, speaking to reporters outside the Akita branch. He called for vote weight disparities to be rectified and urged the courts to “send a clear message.”
As of Jan. 26, the day before official campaigning for the lower house election began, the Hokkaido No. 3 district in northern Japan had the largest number of voters at 462,999, while the Tottori No. 1 district in western Japan had the smallest, with 220,820 voters. Both districts include their prefectural capitals.
The 2.10-fold gap compares with 2.06-fold in the previous general election in 2024, when it improved from 2.08-fold in 2021 after a revised law reduced one seat each from 10 less-populated prefectures and allocated them to Tokyo and four other densely populated prefectures.
The Supreme Court ruled in September 2025 that the vote weight disparity in the 2024 election was constitutional.
High courts are the first to hear lawsuits on the validity of elections.
AloJapan.com