The Tokyo gubernatorial election campaign kicked off Thursday, with three main contenders vying for the post:

Thanks to the backing of former Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara, Inose appears to be the front-runner in the gubernatorial race.

Before serving as vice governor under Ishihara for more than five years, Inose was the right-hand man for another celebrated political figure — Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.