Osaka voters will once again face a referendum on merging the city’s 24 wards following a decision Friday on a plan that would create four large, semiautonomous wards.
The agreement on the referendum, likely to take place on Nov. 1, is a long-sought victory for Osaka Mayor Ichiro Matsui, Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura and their Osaka Ishin no Kai (One Osaka) political group. But it comes with significant political risks for both men due to continuing opposition, the national political scene and the coronavirus pandemic.
“This will be the final referendum, and we’ll follow its results,” Yoshimura told reporters after Friday’s decision.
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