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Japan police ramp up security to tackle ‘lone wolf’ attacks ahead of Tokyo election
Security has been tightened since former prime minister Shinzo Abe was fatally shot during a stump speech in 2022
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As campaigning began on Friday for the Tokyo metropolitan assembly election, Japanese police have stepped up measures to thwart possible “lone wolf” attacks after incidents involving notable politicians in recent years.
Top politicians are set to converge on the Japanese capital for a close contest seen as a bellwether for the national House of Councillors election this summer, in which the ruling Liberal Democratic Party is expected to struggle.
“We are mobilising the organisation’s full strength. We cannot create conditions that allow for the ‘unexpected’,” a senior official of the Metropolitan Police Department said.
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Stump speeches are a mainstay of Japanese elections, offering candidates a chance to get their message across and granting voters opportunities to meet their potential representatives.
Politicians have been targeted while campaigning in recent years, with former prime minister Shinzo Abe fatally shot during a stump speech in the city of Nara before the 2022 House of Councillors election.
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During an election-related appearance in Wakayama, also in western Japan, in 2023, an explosive device was hurled toward then-prime minister Fumio Kishida.
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