Thread by @mrjeffu

Thread: Political posters in Tokyo's crazy gubernatorial election.
(1) Let's start with one of the posters for Kawai Yusuke, a perennial candidate known for cosplaying as the Joker. Here he's cosplaying as the Mask and advocating polygamy to solve Japan's declining birthrate.

(2) Some of Kawai's other posters feature nearly-nude photos of gyaru model/musician Sakurai Miu. Here is a video of her putting one up. The poster asks which is crazy: her, or this messed-up society? Kawai's face covers up her private parts.

(3) This year is going to have a lot of different posters because the NHK Party is exploiting a loophole in Japanese election laws. It's running 24 candidates - not to win, but to sell their designated spots on poster boards to various attention-seekers.

(4) NHK Party candidate spots on poster boards are going to vary by location. For example, one board near Shinjuku Chuo Park is being used to promote Japanese-style Occult Grunge Rock musician Rury Shibuya. Here's a link to one of her songs:

(5) NHK Party leader Tachibana has also shared an image of this poster. The QR code on the poster leads to the Instagram account of the #1 host at a Kabukicho host club. instagram.com/avanti_kei/

(6) Kurokawa Atsuhiko's poster includes the hashtag "running from jail." Kurokawa is known for advocating various conspiracy theories. He was recently arrested over his party's extreme actions towards candidates in another election.

(7) Tokyo prepared boards with 48 slots, but over 50 candidates have registered. Everyone is supposed to have equal space on the boards. Overflow candidates such as this man, Kobayashi Hiroshi, are having to tape their posters to the edge of the boards.

(8) One of my personal favorites, perennial candidate Dr. NakaMats, has been unsuccessfully running in elections since 1991. The eccentric inventor is now 96 years-old. His poster mentions his high intelligence, samurai heritage, and love for Tokyo.

(9) Goto Teruki is another of Japan's most well-known perennial candidates. I think this might be his 17th or 18th attempt at running for office. This year's poster says "Goto Teruki will sing the song of peace." I think he might be cosplaying as Lacus Clyne from Gundam Seed.

(10) A man named Matsuda Michihito is running under the name "AI Mayor," saying he'll use AI to make policy decisions if elected. However, he's very friendly with other fringe figures and his offer to make one of them vice-governor does not sound like an AI-generated idea.

(11) Another example of NHK Party board "hijacking" involves nationalistic posters asserting Japan's territorial claim to Takeshima (Dokdo) and calling on North Korea to return Japanese abductees. These posters have been placed in Koreatown and near a Korean school.

(12) Other variations of Joker candidate Kawai Yusuke's posters featured provocative images of Sakurai Miu and a call change to adult video laws or legalize prostitution. These might be removed today after a police warning was issued to Kawai. sankei.com/article/202406…

(13) Kuwajima Yasufumi of the Nuclear Fusion Party is back again. He's known for driving around Tokyo reciting his views over a loudspeaker. I discussed him in my 2022 Upper House election poster mega thread (which has about 50 posters in it).

(14) NHK Party supporter Fukushima Yuzuki is another example of someone who is making use of the "hijacked" boards. Her posters have a QR code linking to her YouTube/Instagram/TikTok, etc. instabio.cc/30715176bIBLU

(15) “Right now, our eyes met.” This is yet another example of an NHK Party board-"hijacking" poster. It's advertising the social media accounts of Rabumi, the manager of a Ginza bar frequented by NHK Party leader Tachibana. sites.google.com/view/ginzabar/…

(16) Movie director Ando Kozo appears to have purchased NHK Party poster space near Sasazuka station. Ando recently directed the jewelry store heist film Shimokita Blazer.

(17) At least one NHK Party "hijacked" board features "Look at cute me giving a political speech" posters. The QR codes lead to scammy-looking profiles on a paid dating site. I thought actual business ads were not allowed? (hat tip to @LaserBlade )

(18) Here's yet another NHK Party poster board "hijack" that is dragging this election further into the gutter: some guy is using NHK Party poster board slots to advertise his sexual prowess, with a QR code for ladies to add him as a friend on LINE.

(19) After Joker politician Kawai Yusuke received a police warning about his obscene election posters, another Japanese internet celebrity filmed themselves helping take down the posters. Kawai has claimed he is trying to get the posters removed ASAP.

(20) There's probably going to be a lot more NHK Party board "hijack" examples before this thread is over. Here is one using NHK Party spaces to attract more followers to their Twitter account (which posts more about cat memes than politics).

(21) "Yuri-chan! I'm not faking my academic background." - Governor Koike Yuriko has been accused of lying about graduating from Cairo University. One of Joker politician Kawai Yusuke's posters includes a photo of his diploma from Kyoto University, one of Japan's top schools.

(22) Other variations of Kawai Yusuke are dissing cities that belong to Tokyo but are far from its core wards by advocating that they should just be transferred to neighboring prefectures.
•Hachioji shall be given to Yamanashi.
•Machida shall be given to Kanagawa.

(23) The NHK Party poster spaces on a board in Takadanobaba contain Japanese grammar advice.
For example:
Usage of Particles "が" and "は"
When you want to emphasize the first half, use "が"; when you want to emphasize the second half, use "は".

"私が店長です。" (Emphasizes "私")
"私は店長です。" (Emphasizes "店長")

(24) There are also election poster boards going up in Tokyo's southern islands. Incumbent Governor Koike has a poster for the city that says she is working "for the people of the city," and one for the islands that says she's working "for the islanders."

(25) "Otsu Ayaka! Give back the money!" -In 2023 NHK Party leader Tachibana signed over party leadership to this former child actress, only to later regret his decision. The government recognized Otsu as legal owner of the original party's funds.

(26) Fringe candidates lack organizational support, so their posters will often never be put up in remote areas of Tokyo. On the island of Chichi-jima, more than 900 kilometers south of central Tokyo, most of this poster board is empty.

(27) Even VTubers have posters in the Tokyo gubernatorial election. A VTuber dog who lives in Thailand and is a huge fan of the NHK Party appears to have purchased some of the party's poster space to advertise several YouTube channels. youtube.com/@DogNkoku/vide…

(28) Yet another example of someone who purchased NHK Party poster board space: this time it's a poster with an anime-style cat girl drawing and offers of advice about relationships & other life problems. (Despite appearances, this is not a VTuber)

(29) This is a pretty interesting example of an NHK Party posterboard hijack: The party's slots on an election poster board in front of an elementary school feature educational photos of bugs.

(30) "Corgis with long tails are great!"
That's the only message on the posters occupying the NHK Party's slots on this poster board.

(31) This is a poster for Sawa Shigemi. The QR code leads to his website, which lists his experience as a Lieutenant Colonel in the JGSDF, burger flipper at McDonald's, business owner, and Buddhist monk. He also played Oda Nobunaga in a stage play. saipon.jp/h/sawa