Japan's Okinawa Prefecture governor election: Incumbent Governor Tamaki Danny and challenger Genta Furushe are in a stalemate

Tamaki Dani, the current governor of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, is seeking a third consecutive victory. (AP file photo)

Japan's Okinawa Prefecture governor election will be held on the 13th. The latest pre-election polls show that the two major candidates are basically evenly matched, but the challenger Genta Furusha, who is supported by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, has a slight advantage over the current governor Tamaki Dani, who is seeking a third consecutive victory. However, because 40% of the voters have not yet expressed their opinion, it is still undecided who will win the county governor's seat.

A joint poll conducted by the Asahi Shimbun, the Okinawa Times and the local TV station "Ryukyu Asahi Broadcasting" via telephone and online on the 5th and 6th of this month showed that although there were as many as six people running for election, this Okinawa Prefecture governor election was actually a battle between Tamaki and Kosei. Among them, the 42-year-old former Naha City deputy mayor Kosei, recommended by the Liberal Democratic Party, had a slight advantage over the 66-year-old current governor Tamaki, who had served two terms.

There are four other candidates including Toshi Kaneshima, Masahiro Sueyoshi, Higa Takayoshi and Yara Tosuke, but their chances of winning are slim.

However, 40% of the respondents did not express support for the project.

Another poll conducted during the same period by Ryukyu Shinpo, Kyodo News and Okinawa TV also showed that the support rates of Koshe and Tamaki were about the same.

Japan's Okinawa Prefecture governor election challenger Genta Furusha and his wife made their final sprint to vote on the streets. (Extracted from Gu Xie Official X)