Hashimoto winning Osaka election

Lawyer and TV celebrity Toru Hashimoto looked set to win Sunday's Osaka's gubernatorial election, which would make him the nation's youngest governor ever.

Toru Hashimoto, center, celebrates as it becomes apparent that he had won Osaka's gubernatorial election Sunday.(MASANORI TAKAHASHI/ THE ASAHI SHIMBUN)

Hashimoto, 38, was supported by prefectural chapters of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner New Komeito.

He was likely to defeat Sadatoshi Kumagai, 63, a former professor of engineering at Osaka University's graduate school; Shoji Umeda, 57, a lawyer; and two other rookie candidates.

Kumagai was supported by the opposition Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan), the Social Democratic Party and Kokumin Shinto (People's New Party). Umeda was backed by the Japanese Communist Party.

Kochi Governor Masanao Ozaki, who was elected to the post last month, is currently the nation's youngest prefectural leader at 40 years old.

It was the first time in 33 years that candidates from main ruling and opposition parties squared off in an Osaka gubernatorial election.

However, the national headquarters of the LDP and New Komeito withheld offering official support to the popular Hashimoto, allowing him to appeal to a broader range of voters--particularly those unaffiliated with any particular party.

Capitalizing on his name recognition and political backing, Hashimoto quickly surged ahead.

Kumagai, his main rival, was supported by Minshuto. The party's candidates won Upper House and Osaka mayoral elections last year.

The focus of the election campaign that kicked off Jan. 10 was on how to revitalize the local economy. The Osaka prefectural government is in dire financial straits.

Without referring to specific measures to resolve the issue, Hashimoto kept hammering away at the theme of "changing Osaka together."

His speeches on city streets always attracted big crowds, mainly because he is a household name not only in Kansai but also in the Kanto region.

Hashimoto is no stranger to controversy.

He once said Japan should possess nuclear weapons. Another time, he referred to instances of Japanese men engaging the services of (Chinese) prostitutes as a form of "ODA (official development assistance) to China."

Fusae Ohta announced in December she would not seek a third term due to money-related scandals that surfaced.(IHT/Asahi: January 28,2008)