Tottori Assembly Passes Ordinance on Election Poster Board Use

Tottori, Oct. 10 (Jiji Press)--The Tottori prefectural assembly in western Japan on Thursday unanimously passed an ordinance banning the use of official boards for election candidates' posters for purposes unrelated to election campaigns.

The move came after many unrelated posters were displayed during the campaign period for the July 7 Tokyo gubernatorial election. The Tottori prefectural government aims to implement the ordinance promptly.

It is the first time a Japanese prefecture has enacted such an ordinance since the Tokyo poll, according to the National Governors' Association.

In addition to the ban on unrelated posters such as those for commercial purposes, the ordinance clarified that only one poster can be displayed per candidate on each board.

While there are no penal provisions for violators, the measure allows local election authorities to take necessary steps against violations, such as issuing orders to remove problematic posters.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]