The Democratic Party of Japan's decision to hold the presidential election Saturday is prompting members to question why it must be held so soon and why the voting is being restricted to those with Diet seats.
"This time is different from other DPJ presidential elections, because the new leader could be a prime minister candidate. Honestly, I wish there were more opportunities for the people to gain an understanding (of the candidates' views)," Lower House Representative Shu Watanabe of Shizuoka Prefecture said during a television program on Fuji TV Wednesday.
"If the election was scheduled for Sunday night, we would have been able to go back to our constituencies on Saturday and Sunday" to listen to the voters and explain the situation to them, he said.