governor of Tokyo
{{Short description|Head of government of Tokyo}}
{{more citations needed|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox official post
| post = Governor of Tokyo
| body =
| native_name = {{lang|ja|東京都知事}}
| flag =
| flagsize = 150px
| flagborder =
| flagcaption =
| insignia = File:Flag of Tokyo Metropolis.svg
| insigniasize = 150px
| insigniacaption = Flag of Tokyo
| image = Yuriko_Koike_official_portrait_(cropped).jpg
| alt =
| incumbent = Yuriko Koike
| incumbentsince = 1 August 2016
| type =
| status =
| department = Tokyo Metropolitan Government
| style = Governor (informal)
The Honourable (formal)
| member_of =
| reports_to =
| residence = Tokyo Governor's Mansion (until 2014)
| seat =
| nominator =
| appointer = Direct election
| appointer_qualified =
| termlength = Four years, no term limit
| termlength_qualified =
| constituting_instrument =
| precursor = Governor of Edo Prefecture
Governor of Tokyo Prefecture
Mayor of Tokyo
| formation = {{start date and age|1947|5|3}}
| first = Seiichiro Yasui
| last =
| abolished =
| succession =
| abbreviation =
| unofficial_names =
| deputy = Lieutenant Governors of Tokyo
| salary =
| website =
}}
The {{nihongo|Governor of Tokyo|東京都知事|Tōkyō-To Chiji}} is the head of government of Tokyo.
In 1943, upon the unification of Tokyo City and Tokyo Prefecture into Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the position of Governor was created. Previously, the prefecture had a Governor while the City had a Mayor. The current title was adopted in 1947 due to the enactment of the Local Autonomy Law.
Overview
The Governor of Tokyo is the head of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and is elected by the citizens of Tokyo Metropolis every four years, most recently in the 2024 Tokyo gubernatorial election.
As Tokyo has the largest economy and population in the country, government policies can greatly affect national affairs, giving a governor significant influence in the country and a louder voice in the National Governors' Association.
The annual budget of Tokyo is about 13 trillion yen, ten times that of other prefectures and comparable to the national budget of Indonesia, so a governor also has a great deal of influence in the national economy.{{Cite web|url=https://www.worldometers.info/gdp/gdp-by-country/|title=GDP by Country - Worldometer|website=www.worldometers.info}} The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has more than 160,000 employees, making it by far Japan's largest employer.{{Cite web|url=https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/35b483830750f0f624927f80ffb9e945338b4158|title=予算13兆円、職員16万人…東京都知事の権力と影響力（THE PAGE）|website=Yahoo!ニュース}}
Qualifications
Candidates must be a citizen of Japan and be a resident of Tokyo for more than three months, and must be over the age of 30. Candidates must also put up three million yen to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, which will only be returned if they receive at least 10% of the votes.{{Cite web |last=Fukada |first=Takahiro |date=February 8, 2011 |title=The second-most powerful job |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2011/02/08/reference/the-second-most-powerful-job/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161201213927/http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2011/02/08/reference/the-second-most-powerful-job/#.WECYnOTP1mM |archive-date=December 1, 2016 |access-date=November 12, 2022 |website=The Japan Times}}
List
{{Main|Tokyo Metropolitan Government#Governor}}
= Appointed, Tokyo Prefecture (1869–1943) =
- Karasumaru Mitsue (1868)
- Ōki Takatō (1868–1869)
- Mibu Motoosa (1869–1871)
- Yuri Kimimasa (1871–1872)
- Ōkubo Ichiō (1872–1875)
- Kusumoto Masataka (1875–1879)
- Matsuda Michiyuki (1879–1882)
- Yoshikawa Akimasa (1882–1885)
- Watanabe Hiromoto (1885–1886)
- Takasaki Goroku (1886–1890)
- Marquis Hachisuka Mochiaki (1890–1891)
- Tomita Tetsunosuke (1891–1893)
- Miura Yasushi (1893–1896)
- Marquis Koga Michitsune (1896–1897)
- Viscount Okabe Nagamoto (1897–1898)
- Koizuka Ryū (1898)
- Baron Senge Takatomi (1898–1908)
- Hiroshi Abe (governor) (1908–1912, 1st time)
- Hiroshi Abe (1919–1921, 2nd time)
- Usami Katsuo (1921–1925)
= Appointed, Tokyo Metropolis (1943–1947) =
- Shigeo Ōdachi (1943–1944)
- Toshizō Nishio (1944–1945)
- Hisatada Hirose (1945–1946)
- Shōhei Fujinuma (1946)
- Haruo Matsui (1946)
- Seiichirō Yasui (1946–1947)
- Kazumi Iinuma (1947)
= Elected, Tokyo Metropolis (1947–''present'') =
| class="wikitable notheme" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="2" |{{Abbr|No.|Number}} !Portrait ! style="width:15em" |Name (born{{spaced ndash}}died) ! colspan="2" |Term of office ! style="width:6em" |Party ! style="width:6em" |Election |
| 1
|bgcolor="{{party color|Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)}}" | |Seiichiro Yasui |May 3, 1947 |April 18, 1959 |{{Party shading/Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)}} | Liberal Democratic |1947 ---- 1951 ---- 1955 |
|---|
| 2
|bgcolor="{{party color|Independent (politician)}}" | |Ryutaro Azuma |April 27, 1959 |April 22, 1967 |{{Party shading/Independent (politician)}} | Independent{{efn|name=a|Elected with the support of the LDP.}} |1959 ---- 1963 |
| 3
| bgcolor="{{party color|Independent (politician)}}" | |Ryokichi Minobe |April 23, 1967 |April 22, 1979 | {{Party shading/Independent (politician)}} | Independent{{efn|name=b|First elected with the support of the Japan Socialist Party and Japan Communist Party.}} |1967 ---- 1971 ---- 1975 |
| 4
| bgcolor="{{party color|Independent (politician)}}" | |Shunichi Suzuki |April 23, 1979 |April 22, 1995 | {{Party shading/Independent (politician)}} | Independent |1979 ---- 1983 ---- 1987 ---- 1991 |
| 5
| bgcolor="{{party color|Independent (politician)}}" | |Yukio Aoshima |April 23, 1995 |April 22, 1999 | {{Party shading/Independent (politician)}} | Independent |1995 |
| 6
|bgcolor="{{party color|Independent (politician)}}" | |Shintaro Ishihara |April 23, 1999 |October 31, 2012 |{{Party shading/Independent (politician)}} | Independent{{efn|name=c|Elected with the support of the LDP and New Komeito.}} |1999 ---- ---- ---- |
| 7
| bgcolor="{{party color|Independent (politician)}}" | |Naoki Inose |December 18, 2012 |December 24, 2013 | {{Party shading/Independent (politician)}} | Independent{{efn|name=d|Elected with the support of the LDP, New Komeito, and Restoration.}} |2012 |
| 8
| bgcolor="{{party color|Independent (politician)}}" | |Yōichi Masuzoe |February 11, 2014 |June 21, 2016 | {{Party shading/Independent (politician)}} | Independent{{efn|name=c|Elected with the support of the LDP and New Komeito.}} |2014 |
| 9
| bgcolor="{{party color|Independent (politician)}}" | |Yuriko Koike |August 2, 2016 |Incumbent | {{Party shading/Independent (politician)}} | Independent{{efn|name=e|Elected with the support of the Tomin First in 2020.}} |2016 ---- ---- |
Notes
{{Notelist}}