TOKYO, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike announced Wednesday that she will run in next month's gubernatorial election in the Japanese capital for a third term.
Koike, 71, said at a plenary meeting of the Tokyo metropolitan assembly on the final day of its ongoing session that she decided to run in the July 7 gubernatorial race because she wants to make Tokyo better for its residents.
The announcement came after Renho, a House of Councillors member of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, earlier declared her candidacy for the Tokyo gubernatorial election.
With the Tokyo chapter of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) deciding to support Koike, a former lawmaker with the party, the election is expected to be a two-woman race between the incumbent and 56-year-old Renho.
Koike, a conservative who became the first female governor of Tokyo in 2016 after serving as Japan's defense minister and environment minister, scored an overwhelming victory in the previous gubernatorial race in 2020.
Koike stressed that over the past eight years, she has devoted herself to tackling challenges that will go down in history, such as the coronavirus pandemic and hosting the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, noting that she has changed various aspects of the city.
The official campaign period for the Tokyo race is slated to begin on June 20. ■