Politics Youngest-ever mayor elected in Japan

Hopefully, this will usher in a new trend in Japanese politics: 26-year-old Harvard graduate Ryosuke Takashima was elected mayor of Ashiya in Hyōgo Prefecture!

Winning more than 46 per cent of the vote, Ryosuke Takashima defeated the incumbent and two other rivals in the Ashiya mayoral election on April 23. [...] Takashima broke the previous record for youngest mayor set in 1994, when Kotaro Shishida was elected at 27 to lead Musashimurayama in western Tokyo, according to the Japan Association of City Mayors. Takashima campaigned on providing more support for young families, free medical care for people 18 and younger and improved English education programs.

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I wish him luck!

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It is also worth mentioning that 34-year-old Arfiya Eri, whose parents are Uyghur and Uzbek, and who has advocated for greater women's rights and gender equality, was elected to the Lower House.

Time magazine included Takashima Ryosuke, Japan's youngest mayor, in its "Time 100 Next 2025" list, which highlights emerging "global figures shaping the future." Speaking to reporters on 1 October, the 28-year-old mayor said he felt deeply grateful for the recognition from both Japan and abroad, adding that it also served as a source of motivation for his city.

The magazine cited several of Takashima's initiatives, including efforts to personalise education in local schools, the discontinuation of ceremonial cash gifts for elderly residents, and practical climate measures focused on cost efficiency. It also noted his commitment to transparency through open discussions that help residents understand policy decisions. Takashima told reporters he was pleased that Time had chosen to highlight his education reform initiative — which he calls "just-right learning" — ahead of his other policies.

However, he commented that he is not quite happy with the way the magazine described him as having "prioritised reforms that benefit younger generations" through those measures. "That's not my true intention," Takashima said. "I explained (to Time representatives) that what I have been doing isn't about replacing budgets for elderly people with budgets for children, but that likely didn't get through properly." Time described him as "breaking the mould" in "Japan, a country shaped by its gerontocratic politics." The mayor said, "I am probably not so much 'breaking the mould' as the magazine approved of the way Ashiya residents chose to entrust their municipal administration to a 26-year-old."

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The Sempai/Kohai system will soon clip his young wings…poor chap.