Fukushima votes in new mayor amid nuclear clean-up discontent

Takanori Seto, the incumbent mayor of Fukushima, has been defeated by an independent newcomer in the mayoral election, local media reported yesterday.

Kaoru Kobayashi, a 54-year-old former head of the Tohoku regional office of the Environment Ministry, defeated Seto, who was seeking a fourth four-year term and was backed by the Liberal Democratic Party and the Social Democratic Party, by a large margin.

The turnout was 49 per cent in Sunday's election, up from a record-low 38 per cent in the previous election in 2009, according to the Kyodo news agency. Kobayashi got 72,441 votes, twice as many as Seto.

According to Kyodo, Kobayashi's victory over Seto was a sign of public discontent over the local government's reconstruction efforts following the nuclear crisis at a Fukushima power plant, triggered by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

A key issue in Sunday's mayoral election was how to protect the health of residents and decontaminate areas affected by nuclear fallout.