Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike vows break from the past while launching new ‘Party of Hope’ to challenge Shinzo Abe
Abe said on Monday he would dissolve parliament and call elections, hoping to capitalise on a weak and fractured opposition as well as a recent bump in the polls
Popular Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike on Wednesday vowed a break with old-school politics as she officially launched a new party she hopes will shake up the upcoming snap election in Japan.
Pledging to bring back “hope” to the Japanese people, Koike said the party aimed to “reset” the country, which is expected to go to the polls on October 22.
“Now is the time for us to carry out reforms that are un-tied to” vested interests, she told a nationally televised news conference.
Koike lamented that Japanese firms had lost their former glory, complaining that Chinese and American companies, like Amazon and Apple, “have become number one”.
“The snap election is a chance to change,” said the 65-year-old former anchorwoman, accusing the ruling conservative LDP party of being too hesitant in its reform programme.
Most commentators say Koike’s new party, called the “Party of Hope”, will not have enough time to mount a serious nationwide challenge to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe before the snap vote.