In a historic achievement, 33-year-old Shoko Kawata, a former secretary of a ruling party lawmaker, has become Japan’s youngest-ever female mayor. Backed by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), junior coalition partner Komeito, and the main opposition party Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Kawata secured victory in the mayoral election in Yawata, Kyoto prefecture. Celebrating her win, she expressed her commitment to understanding and connecting with people of all generations to foster community growth.
Prior to her mayoral role, Kawata served as a caseworker in the Kyoto city government in 2015 and later became the secretary of LDP’s House of Councillors member Akiko Santo. Kawata’s remarkable achievement surpasses the previous record held by Sawako Naito, who became Japan’s youngest female mayor at the age of 36.