Tokyo gets its first female governor

Tokyo

TOKYO elected its first ever female governor on Sunday as former defence minister and environment minister Yuriko Koike beat two main rivals for the position, despite the fact that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), to which Ms Koike belongs, had declined to back her in the contest.

Mr Abe has made "womanomics" a key part of his "Abenomics" strategies, as he seeks to tap Japan's under-utilised pool of female talent to offset the effect of a fast-declining population. But the LDP did not back the popular Ms Koike and the LDP-backed Hiroya Masuda came in second behind Ms Koike.