Okinawa elects governor opposed to plan to relocate US air base

Residents in Japan's Okinawa island have elected a governor who opposes plans to relocate a US military base, in a fresh setback for efforts to resolve a thorny issue in military relations.

Okinawa Governor Hirokazu Nakaima, backed by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democratic Party, was soundly defeated in the key local election last night by former mayor Takeshi Onaga, 64.

The vote is a blow to plans to relocate the controversial US air base, which is home to the bulk of US military forces in Japan. Delays in relocating the US Marine Corps' Futenma air base in Okinawa have long been an irritant in US-Japan relations.

Abe is keen to make progress on the project as he seeks tighter ties with Washington in the face of an assertive China.

Nakaima, 75, had approved a US-Japan plan to relocate Futenma to a less populous part of the island.

Onaga, a conservative who once supported the base move to coastal northern Okinawa, later changed his mind to say he wanted it out of the prefecture. His platform was also critical of other Abe policies, such as the use of nuclear power.