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2015 Osaka Metropolis Plan referendum

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2015 referendum in Osaka and surrounding cities, Japan
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Osaka Metropolis Plan referendum
17 May 2015 (2015-05-17)
Referendum on the implementation of the Osaka Metropolis plan
Results
Choice Votes %
Yes 694,844 49.62%
No 705,585 50.38%
Valid votes 1,400,429 99.60%
Invalid or blank votes 5,655 0.40%
Total votes 1,406,084 100.00%
Registered voters/turnout 2,104,076 66.83%
Result by ward.  Yes  No

A referendum on the implementation of the Osaka Metropolis Plan was held in Osaka on 17 May 2015. In the event of a "yes" vote, the wards in Osaka City would be reorganized into special wards similar to those in Tokyo. The proposal was defeated by a slim margin of 10,741 votes (0.76%).

A rerun referendum in 2020 was defeated by a similar margin.

Results

50.4% voted against the proposal. 13 out of 24 Osaka wards voted "no".

Interest on the referendum was particularly high. The turnout of 66.83% is 5.91% higher than the turnout in the 2011 mayoral and gubernatorial election.

Totals

Referendum results
Choice Votes %
Referendum failed No 705,585 50.38
Yes 694,844 49.62
Valid votes 1,400,429 99.60
Invalid or blank votes 5,655 0.40
Total votes 1,406,084 100.00
Registered voters/turnout 2,104,076 66.83
Source: Osaka City Electoral Commission

By wards

Ward Electorate Votes for Votes against For(%) Against(%) Valid votes Invalid votes Total Turnout(%) Proposed special ward
Kita-ku 94,128 36,019 25,001 59.0% 41.0% 61,020 228 61,248 65.1% Kita-ku
Miyakojima-ku 82,237 30,135 26,671 53.0% 47.0% 56,806 205 57,011 69.3%
Fukushima-ku 56,798 21,586 17,267 55.6% 44.4% 38,853 131 38,984 68.6%
Konohana-ku 54,470 17,597 18,872 48.3% 51.7% 36,469 137 36,606 67.2% Wangan-ku
Chūō-ku 71,819 24,336 20,657 54.1% 45.9% 44,993 164 45,157 62.9% Chūō-ku
Nishi-ku 70,287 26,094 19,160 57.7% 42.3% 45,254 162 45,416 64.6%
Minato-ku 66,673 21,410 23,351 47.8% 52.2% 44,761 172 44,933 67.4% Wangan-ku
Taishō-ku 55,159 16,646 21,211 44.0% 56.0% 37,857 131 37,988 68.9%
Tennōji-ku 54,774 18,327 20,815 46.8% 53.2% 39,142 174 39,316 71.8% Chūō-ku
Naniwa-ku 48,936 13,563 12,189 52.7% 47.3% 25,752 98 25,850 52.8%
Nishiyodogawa-ku 75,827 23,670 28,337 45.5% 54.5% 52,007 179 52,186 68.8% Wangan-ku
Yodogawa-ku 138,515 48,566 38,903 55.5% 44.5% 87,469 379 87,848 63.4% Kita-ku
Higashiyodogawa-ku 136,353 43,388 41,340 51.2% 48.8% 84,728 336 85,064 62.4%
Higashinari-ku 61,085 20,689 20,667 50.0% 50.0% 41,356 194 41,550 68.0% Higashi-ku
Ikuno-ku 83,886 25,396 29,190 46.5% 53.5% 54,586 236 54,822 65.4%
Asahi-ku 74,371 23,145 28,048 45.2% 54.8% 51,193 209 51,402 69.1%
Jōtō-ku 132,091 46,728 45,784 50.5% 49.5% 92,512 338 92,850 70.3%
Tsurumi-ku 85,852 29,859 29,752 50.1% 49.9% 59,611 222 59,833 69.7%
Abeno-ku 85,354 30,434 32,446 48.4% 51.6% 62,880 254 63,134 74.0% Minami-ku
Suminoe-ku 100,867 33,184 36,880 47.4% 52.6% 70,064 250 70,314 69.7% Minami-ku/Wangan-ku
Sumiyoshi-ku 123,549 38,623 45,950 45.7% 54.3% 84,573 373 84,946 68.8% Minami-ku
Higashisumiyoshi-ku 105,456 34,079 37,322 47.7% 52.3% 71,401 363 71,764 68.1%
Hirano-ku 155,527 46,072 56,959 44.7% 55.3% 103,031 487 103,518 66.6%
Nishinari-ku 90,062 25,298 28,813 46.8% 53.2% 54,111 233 54,344 60.3% Chūō-ku
Osaka City 2,104,076 694,844 705,585 49.62% 50.38% 1,400,429 5,655 1,406,084 66.83%

Reactions to the result

After the defeat of the plan he had championed in the previous five years, Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto announced that he would retire from politics once his term expired in December 2015. A major shakeup also occurred in Hashimoto's Japan Innovation Party, with the leader Kenji Eda and secretary-general Yorihisa Matsuno both announcing their resignation from their posts after the defeat.

The referendum outcome was perceived as a blow to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had supported the plan despite opposition from the Osaka branch of his Liberal Democratic Party, hoping that the Innovation Party would in turn support his efforts to amend the Constitution.

References

  1. ^ The Japan Times, May 17, 2015: Hashimoto announces exit from politics after Osaka rejects merger plan in referendum
  2. ^ The Japan News (Yomiuri Shimbun), May 18, 2015: Osaka rejects city reform plan; Hashimoto to retire
  3. The Japan News (Yomiuri Shimbun), May 18, 2015: No retreat: Hashimoto’s final act
  4. The Japan Times, May 18, 2015: Osaka referendum causes turbulence for LDP, Komeito
  5. Asahi Shimbun, May 18, 2015: Defeat of Osaka referendum hurts Abe's constitutional revision strategy Archived 2015-05-21 at the Wayback Machine
Elections in Osaka Prefecture
Gubernatorial elections
Prefectural elections
Osaka Mayoral elections
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