Campaigning for the July 3 Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election officially got under way Friday, with 220 candidates vying for 127 seats.
As the poll in the capital generally reflects the national political situation, parties are ready for an all-out battle to win support from Tokyo's 10.27 million voters.
The Liberal Democratic Party is desperate to achieve strong results, fearing that a poor performance might negatively affect Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's postal reform drive.