The 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. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has more than 160,000 employees, making it by far Japan's largest employer.
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.
List
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) PortraitName (borndied)Term of officePartyElection1Seiichiro YasuiMay 3, 1947April 18, 1959 Independent1947
1951
19552Ryutaro AzumaApril 27, 1959April 22, 1967 Independent1959
19633Ryokichi MinobeApril 23, 1967April 22, 1979 Independent1967
1971
19754Shunichi Suzuki April 23, 1979April 22, 1995 Independent1979
1983
1987
19915Yukio Aoshima April 23, 1995April 22, 1999 Independent19956Shintaro IshiharaApril 23, 1999October 31, 2012 Independent1999
2003
2007
20117Naoki Inose December 18, 2012 December 24, 2013 Independent20128Yōichi Masuzoe February 11, 2014 June 21, 2016 Independent20149Yuriko Koike August 2, 2016Incumbent Independent2016
2020
2024
Notes
References