The Centrist Reform United Party has reached a consensus on coordinated local election efforts with the Constitutional Democratic Party and the Komeito Party.

Center Party, Constitutional Democratic Party, and Komeito Reach Agreement on Unified Local Election Cooperation

The Center Party, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, and the Komeito party's parliamentary leaders held talks on April 7 and reached a basic agreement on coordinated electoral cooperation among the three parties for the unified local elections scheduled for next spring.

The three parties will establish "liaison coordination councils" in each prefecture, where local organizations will negotiate and coordinate candidate nominations with the aim of maximizing seats for centrist-aligned candidates from both the Center Party and Komeito.

After the meeting, Shō Takeo, Secretary-General of the Center Party, told reporters: "Our goal is to expand the influence of the centrist political line, and we have confirmed that coordination efforts will be implemented down to the grassroots level."

The basic agreement explicitly states that former Center Party candidates who lost in the previous House of Representatives election will "fully support" candidates nominated by the Constitutional Democratic Party and Komeito in the upcoming unified local elections.

Specific strategies such as candidate coordination and mutual endorsements will be studied by the liaison coordination councils; only if consensus cannot be reached at the local level will the three parties’ central headquarters engage in further consultations.

Given that the Center Party lacks deep roots in local areas, it plans to focus its strategy on providing endorsement support to candidates from the other two parties.

The decision to have the liaison coordination councils lead the coordination process stems from ongoing dissatisfaction among local party organizations regarding the Center Party’s founding background and the nature of this three-party collaboration.

A Center Party official stated: "If coordination were driven solely by the central headquarters, it might trigger resistance."

Meanwhile, according to sources within the Center Party, some individuals who lost in the previous House of Representatives election—and certain local members of the Constitutional Democratic Party—have already shown signs of considering switching to other parties such as the Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party).

With about a year remaining before the unified local elections, the urgency to reach this preliminary agreement reflects an intention to retain these defeated candidates and local legislators. As one insider put it: "This move is also aimed at keeping them from defecting."

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1861861684362249/

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