TOKYO, Nov 13 (NNN-NHK) – A 33-year-old former secretary of a ruling party, has become Japan’s youngest-ever female mayor, after winning election in Yawata, Kyoto Prefecture, local media reported, today.
Shoko Kawata, an independent, backed by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), junior coalition partner, Komeito, and the main opposition party Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, beat two other contenders in the mayoral election, held yesterday, following the resignation of the former mayor, Kyodo News reported.
“I want to empathise with people from all generations and work on creating a community that can grow,” Kawata said, as she celebrated her victory with supporters.
Prior to her mayoral win, Kawata, a native of Nara in western Japan, served as a caseworker, in the Kyoto city government in 2015. After leaving the city government, she assumed the role of a secretary of Akiko Santo, a House of Councillors member, who belongs to the LDP.
Kawata’s victory surpasses the previous record held by Sawako Naito, who became the youngest female mayor in Japan at the age of 36.
