Yuichiro Tamaki

Yuichiro Tamaki (玉木 雄一郎, Tamaki Yūichirō, born 1 May 1969) is a Japanese politician and the leader of the Democratic Party for the People (DPFP). He is a member of the House of Representatives,[2] and a former leader of Kibō no Tō.[3][4][5] Before joining Kibō, Tamaki was a member of the Democratic Party.[4]

Yuichiro Tamaki
Tamaki in 2016
Leader of the Democratic Party for the People
Assumed office
7 May 2018
Co-leader with Kohei Otsuka
(7 May–4 September 2018)
Preceded byParty established
Leader of Kibō no Tō
In office
14 November 2017[1] – 7 May 2018
DeputyAtsushi Oshima
Preceded byYuriko Koike
Succeeded byShigefumi Matsuzawa
Member of the House of Representatives
Assumed office
31 August 2009
Preceded byYoshio Kimura
ConstituencyKagawa-2nd
Personal details
Born (1969-05-01) 1 May 1969
Sangawa, Kagawa, Japan
Political partyDPP
Other political
affiliations		Kibō (2017–2018, merger)
DP (2016–2017, split)
DPJ (2005–2016, merger)
Alma materUniversity of Tokyo
Harvard Kennedy School

Early life and government career

Tamaki was born in Sangawa, a small rural town in Kagawa Prefecture. His parents are engaged in agriculture.

After graduating from the Faculty of Law, University of Tokyo, he joined the Ministry of Finance in 1993. With government sponsorship, he obtained an MPA from the John F. Kennedy School of Government in 1997, and thereafter served on secondments to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (where he covered Jordan and Libya), Financial Services Agency, Osaka Regional Tax Office, and Cabinet Office. In the latter role, he worked closely with LDP Cabinet ministers Nobuteru Ishihara, Kazuyoshi Kaneko, and Seiichiro Murakami on administrative reform efforts.[6]

Political career

Tamaki resigned from government service in 2005 to run in the 2005 general election after both the Liberal Democratic Party and Democratic Party of Japan approached him to run. He chose to run as a DPJ candidate despite having recently worked in incumbent LDP Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's Cabinet Office. He lost in this race, and spent the next four years living with his extended family in the countryside.[6]

In his second electoral attempt in the 2009 election, he won a seat representing the Kagawa 2nd district, and the DPJ took over the reins of government from the LDP. Tamaki held this seat in the 2012 election, after which he was appointed Deputy Secretary-General of the DPJ, and held this seat again in the 2014 election.[6]

Tamaki was elected as the leader of Kibō no Tō in November 2017. In May 2018, Tamaki led a majority of Kibō members to merge with the Democratic Party, forming the DPFP. Tamaki became the co-leader of the new party, along with DP leader Kohei Otsuka.[7] He would then win a 3-year term as sole party leader in September 2018.[8]

In 2019, Tamaki publicly proposed a meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to discuss constitutional reform, as well as a debate in the Diet on constitutional revision.[9]

In September 2020, the DPFP disbanded, with most members joining the Constitutional Democratic Party. Tamaki and several other conservative DPFP members broke off to form their own party.[10] Among other issues, Tamaki did not agree with the CDP's approach to lowering the consumption tax.[11]

Political views

He supports the expansion of the Japan Self-Defense Forces' activities outside of Japan,[5] saying that the 2015 security laws should be amended instead of being repealed. Tamaki is supportive of amending the constitution, as he says that not setting out the scope of the Japan Self-Defense Forces gives Abe too much authority of what they can do. Opponents of this position, such as Hiroshi Ogushi, say that this is unnecessary. Tamaki opposes the Technical Intern Training Program, saying that it should instead by replaced with a program that specifies what industry a worker may work in and what country they may come from.[12]

References
  1. https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2017/11/5c53126f008d-update3-tokyo-gov-koike-resigns-as-party-leader-after-election-defeat.html
  2. "Yuichiro Tamaki emerges as top candidate to co-head Kibo no To". The Japan Times. 26 October 2017.
  3. Reynolds, Isabel; Hirokawa, Takashi (14 November 2017). "Japan's Koike Steps Down as Party Leader to Focus on Tokyo Post". Bloomberg.
  4. Osaki, Tomohiro (10 November 2017). "Party of Hope picks Yuichiro Tamaki to serve as co-leader alongside founder Yuriko Koike". The Japan Times.
  5. Takeshita, Yuka (10 November 2017). "Yuichiro Tamaki elected Hope party co-leader alongside Koike". Asahi Shimbun.
  6. "プロフィール". たまき雄一郎 オフィシャルサイト (in Japanese). Retrieved 11 September 2020.
  7. "New opposition party lacking in numbers after 2 parties merge". Asahi Shimbun. 7 May 2018. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
  8. Kawai, Tatsuro (4 September 2018). "Tamaki chosen to lead DPP; vows to confront Abe government". Asahi Shimbun. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  9. "DPFP's Tamaki to Propose Meeting on Constitution with Abe". nippon.com. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
  10. "Japan's fractured opposition unites as party of 140-plus lawmakers". Nikkei Asian Review. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
  11. "Japan opposition party to split as merger talks hit impasse". Mainichi Daily News. 12 August 2020. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
  12. Osaki, Tomohiro (9 November 2017). "Kibo no To leadership contenders detail opposing views on security laws and Constitutional revision". The Japan Times.
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