Genta Koja wins Okinawa gubernatorial election in Japan
In Japan, 42-year-old Genta Koja won the election for governor of Okinawa Prefecture, defeating incumbent Governor Denny Tamaki. Koja received 59% of the vote in Sunday’s ballot, officials announced, Al Jazeera English reports.
Koja, a former deputy mayor of Naha, Okinawa’s capital, was backed by the Liberal Democratic Party of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. He defeated 66-year-old Tamaki, who had served two terms as governor and had long advocated relocating a major US military base outside Okinawa.
The youngest governor since 1972
Koja will become Okinawa’s youngest governor since the prefecture was returned to Japan from US administration in 1972. He will also be the first governor of the prefecture born after the reversion.
Masaaki Gabe, professor emeritus at the University of the Ryukyus, said the change of governor could end Okinawa’s legal efforts to block the relocation of US Marines from Futenma Air Base to a new facility in Henoko on the prefecture’s main island.
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Military infrastructure and security
According to Gabe, Koja’s victory could also make it easier to expand military access to airports and ports. He suggested that the new governor may agree to designate civilian facilities for military use.
Koja’s victory comes as Takaichi prepares to present a new national security strategy this year. It is expected to accelerate Japan’s largest military buildup since World War II. Her administration has stated that increased defense spending is necessary to deter China from using force to advance its territorial claims in East Asia.
Okinawa is part of the so-called first island chain, which stretches from Japan to the Philippines and restricts China’s access to the western Pacific Ocean. Yonaguni Island, Japan’s westernmost territory, is located about 110 kilometers east of Taiwan.
