Political parties have made pledges ranging from disaster measures and local infrastructure development to education and the environment in the runup to the July 3 Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election.
With the metro election seen as a litmus test for the course of national politics, the Liberal Democratic Party and the Democratic Party of Japan have again drawn up platforms they are boasting as "manifestos" or other, similar clear-cut pledges in a bid to enhance the appeal of their policies.
Since "manifesto" was chosen as the most popular expression of 2003, the concept has gradually spread to national elections, and some experts hope the upcoming metro poll will promote policy-oriented politics at the local level.