A member of the House of Representatives, Kiyonari Maekawa, of the Japan Restoration Party, was charged with violating the Public Offices Election Law for sending voters a letter calling for him to vote before the public announcement of the House of Representatives election two years ago. will hand down the verdict on the 18th.
While the prosecution demanded a fine, Senator Maekawa insisted on his innocence, and the court's decision is drawing attention.
Kiyonari Maekawa (60), a member of the House of Representatives of the Japan Restoration Party, ran for the 1st district of Nara and was re-elected through proportional representation in the House of Representatives election two years ago. I sent letters to people in the house asking them to send back an "election postcard" with the address of an acquaintance on it.
The public prosecutor's office said that this act was a "pre-election campaign" that practically called on an unspecified number of voters to vote, because the postcards and request letters printed "Please write Maekawa Kiyoshige for the electoral district." I was indicted at home for a misdemeanor charge.
In a trial held at the Nara District Court, the public prosecutor demanded a fine of 300,000 yen. So, it is legally recognized 'preparation for the election'," he claimed innocence.
While the claims of both sides are conflicting, the judgment is scheduled to be handed down from 3:00 pm, and the court's decision will be watched.
The behavior in question
A trial in which an incumbent member of parliament was accused of election fraud.
What the prosecution saw as a problem was the act of Maekawa, who mailed a sealed letter to several people in his constituency before the House of Representatives election was announced two years ago.
What is in the envelope and to whom is it mailed?
According to Mr. Maekawa's side, this sealed letter contains two sheets of postcard paper called "election postcards" that do not contain an address. The document was included with a self-addressed envelope.
It is said that this letter was sent to 2441 people in the constituency listed on the list of graduates from the university where Representative Maekawa graduated.
What is an “election postcard”?
An election postcard is a document containing a candidate's photo and policy that the candidate is permitted to mail to voters during the election period after it has been announced to encourage them to vote for them.
In the postcard paper and the request letter explaining the example of the address written by Mr. Maekawa, the photo of the member and words such as "Please write the constituency with Kiyoshi Maekawa" were printed.
“Election Preparation” or “Preliminary Campaign”?
The Public Offices Election Law does not prohibit "preparing for the election" before public announcement.
Since there is a risk that addressing on election postcards will not be done in time after the public announcement, many campaigns generally carry out "preparation for the election" before the public announcement.
However, if the person who requested the address is an "unspecified number of voters", the postcard that will be handed to the other party will contain words calling for voting, so it is prohibited by the Public Offices Election Law. ” may be considered.
In this regard, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said, ``While it is considered that if it is an internal action of the camp, such as a request to a 'supporter' to help with the election, it will not be considered a preliminary campaign, but it will be determined on a case-by-case basis. I can't."
“Unspecified number of voters” or “supporters”
What happened to the case of Senator Maekawa?
In the trial, a major point of contention was whether the person to whom the letter was sent was a "supporter" who could be asked to write the address by the graduates of the university he graduated from, or whether he was an "unspecified number of voters".
prosecutor's claim
The prosecution said that several people who received the letter testified that they "did not know each other, did not support or support", and "understood it as a request to vote", so it was virtually "unspecified". A large number of voters”, claiming it was an illegal “pre-promotion” to call for votes before it was announced.
Lawmakers' claims
On the other hand, Rep. Maekawa, who is also a lawyer, countered that the letter was sent to someone who graduated from the same university and could be expected to receive support, saying that it was just ``preparing for the election.'' If he was deprived of his status as a member of the Diet, it would be a denial of the will of the people."