Japan election lawsuits challenge vote disparity, as lawyers filed legal actions Tuesday at all eight high courts across the country. They are demanding that Sunday’s House of Councillors election be nullified and rerun.
The lawsuits argue that significant gaps in vote weight violate the constitutional principle of equal representation. Two separate groups of lawyers filed cases with the high courts and their six regional branches.
At a press conference in Osaka, lawyer Hidetoshi Masunaga expressed frustration. “Even though the top court urged correction, this election followed the same flawed system,” he said.
In fact, Kanagawa Prefecture had the most voters per lawmaker, while Fukui had the least, according to Kyodo News. The new maximum vote disparity expanded to 3.13-fold—up from 3.03-fold during the 2022 election.
Japan election lawsuits challenge vote disparity despite previous reforms. In 2015, the government merged Tottori with Shimane and Tokushima with Kochi to reduce inequality. Those efforts helped lower disparities to 3.08-fold in 2016 and 3.00-fold in 2019.
The Supreme Court previously ruled those disparities constitutional. However, it called the issue “urgent” in a 2023 decision. The court had already labeled elections in 2010 and 2013 as being in a “state of unconstitutionality.”
Still, the court has consistently stopped short of canceling election results. Instead, it has pressured lawmakers to enact further reforms—reforms that many now believe have stalled.
According to the Constitution, each citizen should have equal voting power. However, in practice, population differences between urban and rural districts create disparities. Legal experts say such imbalances undermine democratic fairness.
Japan election lawsuits challenge vote disparity once again, echoing decades of public concern and judicial review. Yet lawmakers have struggled to craft a system that balances regional representation with voter equality.
Many believe that meaningful change will only come through direct political action. Until then, these lawsuits serve as both legal protest and public warning. Without intervention, vote inequality may continue to erode trust in Japan’s democratic system.
