Kirk here with an AI translated article on the election that I tweaked slightly:

Kirk here with an AI translated article on the election that I tweaked slightly:

— start translation — Kumamoto governor election, Kimura and Koyama compete - Effectively a ruling vs. opposition party showdown

The Kyodo News Agency conducted a telephone survey on the 15th and 16th regarding the Kumamoto prefectural governor election (voting and ballot counting on the 24th). The leading canditates are vice-governor Kei Kimura (49) [recommended by the LDP and Komeito] and former Kumamoto City mayor Masashi Koyama (58).

The prefectural organizations of the Constitutional Democratic Party, the Communist Party, and the Social Democratic Party are independently supporting Mr. Koyama, effectively making it a ruling party vs. opposition party showdown.

In terms of support by political party, Mr. Kimura has the support of 70% of those who answered they support the LDP, nearly 90% of Komeito supporters, and has penetrated nearly 50% of those who support the Japan Innovation Party. Mr. Koyama has secured nearly 80% of the supporters of the Constitutional Democratic Party and Social Democratic Party, and nearly 90% of the Communist Party supporters.

Hidenori Mori (46), president of a construction company, and Kazuhiko Miyagawa (58), a former high school teacher, are facing an uphill battle. — end translation —

Personally, I’m not a fan of conservative parties – either in Japan or in my home country (the U.S.). So, I’d far prefer to see Mr. Koyama elected, though have nothing against Mr. Kimura personally.

I understand that the LDP fat cats are paying close attention to this election as a sort of indirect referendum on their leadership after all of the recent scandals.