Japan Innovation Party
日本維新の会
AbbreviationIshin, JIP
LeaderNobuyuki Baba
Secretary-GeneralFujita Fumitake
Deputy LeaderHirofumi Yoshimura
FoundersIchirō Matsui
Tōru Hashimoto
Founded2 November 2015 (2015-11-02)
Split fromJapan Innovation Party
HeadquartersOsaka, Osaka Prefecture, Japan
NewspaperNippon Ishin[1]
Student wingIshin Students
Ideology
Political positionCentre-right[9][10] to right-wing[A][2][11]
Colours  Green[12]
Slogan維新はやる。まっすぐに、改革を。
Ishin wa yaru. Massuguni kaikaku o.[13]
("We'll do this. Innovation straight away.")
Councillors
20 / 248
Representatives
41 / 465
Prefectural assembly members
124 / 2,598
Municipal assembly members
766 / 32,430
Website

^ A: The party is sometimes described as far-right,[lower-alpha 1][17][18][19] but voters in Japan perceive the party as centrist.[20][21]

The Japan Innovation Party (日本維新の会, Nippon Ishin no Kai, Japan Restoration Association)[lower-alpha 2] is a conservative, neoliberal and right-wing populist[2][22] political party in Japan.[23] Formed as Initiatives from Osaka in October 2015 from a split in the old Japan Innovation Party, the party became the third-biggest opposition party in the National Diet following the July 2016 House of Councillors election.

The party advocates decentralization,[2] federalism (Dōshūsei), free education,[24] the legalization of gay marriage,[25] limited government,[7] and neoliberal policies.[26] Arguing to remove defense spending limits, and standing with the Liberal Democratic Party on revising the constitution,[27] the party gained conservative support during the 2021 general election, primarily in Osaka.[23]

History

The party was formed in October 2015 under the name Initiatives from Osaka (おおさか維新の会, Ōsaka Ishin no Kai) by Osaka governor Ichirō Matsui and then-Osaka mayor Tōru Hashimoto after they and their supporters left the Japan Innovation Party.[28][29] The Japanese name was the same as the Osaka Restoration Association, which was also formed by Hashimoto, but was differentiated by writing "Osaka" in hiragana (おおさか) rather than in kanji (大阪).[28]

The first major election contested by the party was the July 2016 House of Councillors election. The party performed well in the Kansai region, winning two of four seats in the Osaka at-large district and one of three seats in the Hyogo at-large district.[30][31] In the national PR block the party finished fifth with 5,153,584 votes (9.2%), which meant it won 4 of the 48 seats. The majority of its votes were again centred around Osaka; the party received the most votes in Osaka Prefecture (1,293,626; 34.9%)[32] and was second behind the Liberal Democratic Party in Hyogo Prefecture (470,526; 19.5%).[33] The gain in seats made the party the third-biggest opposition in the National Diet.[34] However, after the election Matsui said the poor showing outside of Kansai was unacceptable for a national party, and that the party would adopt a new name that did not include the word "Osaka" in an attempt to broaden its nationwide appeal.[35] At a meeting on 23 August 2016, the party voted to change its name to Nippon Ishin no Kai (日本維新の会) but did not announce an official English name.[34]

In April 2023 the party made significant gains in local elections, more than doubling its seat totals in various local assemblies to 124.[36] Notably the party also captured the governorship of Nara prefecture through its candidate Makoto Yamashita.[37] Two weeks later the party's candidate Yumi Hayashi took Wakayama 1st district in a by-election.[38]

Ideology, platform and policy

Views on the political position of Nippon Ishin no Kai have been varied. While it has been described as being neoconservative,[39] and right-wing populist by its opponents, the party itself commits to social liberalism, reformism, regionalism and 'self-sustainability' in its party constitution.[40] The party supports the amendment of the Japanese constitution, including the installation of a constitutional court, mandated free education, and increased devolution.[41] The party has not made an official stance on either supporting or opposing the amendment to Article 9 of the Japanese constitution, which prohibits Japan from possessing an offensive military, however has pledged to partake in debate.[42] Economically, the party supports increased economic liberalisation, including deregulation of the labour market and the streamlining of bureaucratic structure.[43] Socially, the party supports the legalisation of same-sex marriage,[25] and optional separate surnames for married couples.[44]

The party has recently been described as centrist and moderate, being perceived as such by the voter base, according to recent public opinion polls.[45][46] The party was also referred to as libertarian.[4][5]

The party manifesto for the 2022 Japanese Councillors election, dubbed "維新八策2022", containing 402 individual policy proposals, and included the following pledges:[47][48][49]

  • Reform of social insurance and pension system, with the introduction of a universal basic income of ¥60,000 per month, with additional supplements for non-coupled elderly
  • Reform of income tax and social insurance fees, replacing the current system with a two-tiered income tax
  • Reform of the social medical insurance system from age-based subsidy rates to income-based cost subsidies
  • Universal access to free education from preschool to university, written within the constitution
  • Free access to childbirth services through a comibation of insurance and voucher system.
  • Deregulation of protected industries such as ridesharing, finance and agriculture
  • Legalization of separate surname options for married couples
  • Same-sex marriage legalisation
  • Maintaining current emission reduction targets with implementation of carbon pricing schemes
  • Legislating Osaka as the vice-capital of Japan
  • Push for further devolution with merger of prefectures into states (dōshūsei), while allocating the consumption tax as a regional tax
  • Constitutional amendments including: Universal free education, devolution, and the establishment of constitutional courts
  • Maintaining agnate succession of the Imperial throne while considering re-royalisation of former Imperial household members.
  • Introduction of the "2:1 rule", requiring two pieces of regulation to be removed per introduction of any new industrial regulation
  • Deregulation of the workforce, allowing for compensated dismissals
  • Repealing the 1%GDP cap on defence spending, aiming for 2% spending and the establishment of a national intelligence organisation.
  • Promotion of free trade, especially within the Asia-pacific region.
  • Adding hospital capacity for COVID-19 treatment through controls over privately run hospitals.
  • Temporary cuts to reduction rate (a 2% consumption tax discount on consumption tax, such as groceries) on consumption tax rate from 8% down to 3%, to counter inflation.
  • 30% reduction in diet members, and a 30% cut in member's compensation.
  • Contributions reform prohibiting corporate and organisational donation loopholes to political parties and candidates.
  • Establishment of a public documents bureau, digitalisation of all public document, and maintaining edit records through utilisation of blockchain technology.
  • Introduction of National Anti-Hate Speech legislation.

Leadership

Parliamentary caucus leadership

(Source:[50])

Position Name
Leader Baba Nobuyuki
Deputy leader Suzuki Muneo
Secretary-General Fujita Fumitake
Chairman of the Policy Bureau Otokita Shun
General Affairs Committee chief Inoue Hidetaka
Diet Affairs Committee chief Endo Takashi
Joint House Caucus Chair Ishii Akira
House of Councilors Caucus Chair Asada Hitoshi

Party leaders

No. Name Took office Left office
1 Tōru Hashimoto 2 November 2015 12 December 2015
2 Ichirō Matsui 12 December 201523 August 2016
3 23 August 2016 27 November 2021
4 27 November 2021 27 August 2022
5 Nobuyuki Baba 27 August 2022 Present

Election results

House of Representatives

Election Leader Constituency Party list Total Position Status
Votes  % Seats +/- Votes  % Seats +/- Seats +/-
2017 Ichirō Matsui 1,765,053 3.18
3 / 289
new 3,387,097 6.07
8 / 176
new
11 / 465
new 6th Opposition
2021 4,802,793 8.36
16 / 289
Increase 13 8,050,830 14.0
25 / 176
Increase 17
41 / 465
Increase 30 3rd Opposition

House of Councillors

Election Leader Constituency Party list Seats Position Status
Votes  % Seats +/- Votes  % Seats +/- Won +/- Total +/-
2016 Ichirō Matsui 3,303,419 5.84
3 / 73
new 5,153,584 9.20
4 / 48
new
7 / 121
new
12 / 242
Increase 7 5th Opposition
2019 3,664,530 7.28
5 / 74
new 4,907,844 9.80
5 / 50
new
10 / 124
new
16 / 245
Increase 4 4th Opposition
2022 5,533,657 10.41
5 / 74
Increase 2 7,845,985 14.79
8 / 50
Increase 4
12 / 125
Increase 5
21 / 248
Increase 5 4th Opposition

Notes

  1. Almost all major media outlets in South Korea have accused JIP of being "far-right" (극우).[14][15][16]
  2. Stated as Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party) on its website's copyright notice

References

  1. Nippon Ishin no Kai (8 September 2016). 機関紙 日本維新 Vol.05 - 松井一郎 (PDF) (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Park, Ju-min; Takenaka, Kiyoshi (1 November 2021). "Dark horse right-wing party emerges as third-largest in Japan lower house". Reuters. Retrieved 4 November 2021. ... The conservative Japan Innovation Party (JIP), which almost quadrupled its haul to 41 seats in the 465-seat legislature, ended up the election's biggest winner, overtaking even the Komeito party, the LDP's coalition partner. ... The right-wing JIP has been seen as a possible ally for the LDP's push to revise the constitution. But it has also called for deregulation, tax cuts and decentralisation of authority to help trigger growth ...
  3. "Future of constitutional revision debate hangs in balance in Japan upper house poll". Mainichi Daily News. Mainichi Shimbun. 5 July 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2020. Prime Minister Abe is approaching conservative opposition Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party) and even the Democratic Party for the People (DPFP) to win their support for constitutional revisions.
  4. 1 2 "Japan's ruling LDP secures sole majority in lower house election". Nikkei Asia. 10 July 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2021. One of the opposition parties that benefited from the LDP's loss of seats is Nippon Ishin no Kai, or Japan Innovation Party, a libertarian group with roots in Osaka. The party's presence could triple from 10 before the election. It is likely to surpass Komeito to become the third-largest party.
  5. 1 2 "Japan's Ruling LDP Wins Outright Majority in General Election". The Diplomat. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  6. "Japan's ruling conservatives have been returned to power, but amid voter frustration, challenges lurk for Kishida". The Conversation. 1 November 2021. Retrieved 13 November 2021. The biggest gains were made by the populist Japan Innovation Party (JIP), which boosted its numbers from 11 to 41 seats.
  7. 1 2 "Political factors and limitations that made the Abe administration the longest ever" (in Japanese). Newsweek Japan. 21 November 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2020. 一方で、日本維新の会は小さな政府論に右派的なポピュリズムを加えた政党ですが ...(On the other hand, the Japan Innovation Party is a political party that has added right-wing populism to its small government theory ...)
  8. "Right-wing populist party makes biggest gains in Japanese elections". Independent.ie. 2 November 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  9. Eric Johnston (6 September 2023). "Nippon Ishin's political path in focus amid differing party views". The Japan Times. Retrieved 6 September 2023. ...the center-right party largely concentrated in the Kansai region is polling well against other opposition parties...
  10. Jio Kamata (18 June 2022). "The Struggles of the Nippon Ishin no Kai". The Diplomat. Retrieved 18 June 2022. The center-right populist party saw marked success in last year's election, but its support base remains limited at the national level.
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  23. 1 2 "Japan election: rightwing populists sweep vote in Osaka". the Guardian. 1 November 2021. Retrieved 2 November 2021.
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  25. 1 2 "日本維新の会の国会議員の皆さまと同性婚に関するオンラインでの意見交換勉強会を開催しました!". 結婚の自由をすべての人に - Marriage for All Japan - (in Japanese). 9 February 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
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  28. 1 2 "Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto's new party debuts". Japan Times. 31 October 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  29. "Abe meets ex-Osaka Mayor Hashimoto on heels of resignation". Nikkei Asian Review. 20 December 2015. Archived from the original on 24 December 2015. Retrieved 22 December 2015.
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  31. 開票結果・速報(選挙区・兵庫県)【参議院選挙2016】 [Results (Hyogo District) [House of Councillors Election 2016]]. Yomiuri Shimbun (in Japanese). Retrieved 21 July 2016.
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