There is a local election in Japan on Sunday

  • Prefecture of Saga election
  • The LDP currently holds 28 out of the 39 seats (including two vacancies) in the prefectural assembly
  • Saga Prefecture is the location of the Genkai Nuclear Power Station
  • Most of the conservative vote will be split between two pronuclear candidates, one supported by the LDP, the other by the agricultural cooperatives (there is antinuclear candidate, but he appears to not have much of a chance of winning)
  • The election should be interesting because PM Abe is trying to enact structural reform, and one of the targets is the agriculture sector

There is more here: Election 2016 (oops): Keep an Eye on Saga Prefecture

Marc Chandler goes to add more:

  • The election “could give insight into how much Prime Minister Abe is going to be able to enact his reforms”

The two main candidates

  • Hiwatashi, the ex-major of Takeo, supported by the LDP
  • Yamaguchi, an ex-bureaucrat … some parts of the LDP favor Yamaguchi
  • “If Yamaguchi draws the protest vote and wins, it could stymie Abe’s third arrow, and invigorate the resistance to significant concessions in the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade talks”
  • The Saga election “may not be the decisive battle, but it offers insight into the early days of Abenomics 2.0″