Sho Sakurai and Patagonia Are Raising Awareness! Let's Vote for Ourselves and Our Families This Weekend 🙇‍♀️

2019.07.16 published

There will be a House of Councillors election

The 25th Regular Election for Members of the House of Councillors, which has been a hot topic in the news recently, will be held.

The election date is Sunday, the 21st.

Early voting has already begun, and it is possible from 8:30 AM to 8:00 PM.

There is no need for a special reason; you can freely vote early anytime.

(On Twitter, posts like "Voting seriously ends in seconds, shocking!" have been trending)

It seems that this time, various individuals such as celebrities, influencers, musicians, and YouTubers are actively calling out "Let's go vote!"

The video that has been making waves is this one.

It is a parody of a video released in the United States in 2018.

If you don't vote, your life will be threatened.

The consumption tax might increase to 10%.

You might not receive your pension at all (even though you're paying!).

Tuition fees are high.

All of these issues are determined by politics, so if you have grievances (which you do, right??), it's imperative to go vote.

Even Sakurai-kun from Arashi said on News ZERO, "If you think that one vote can't change anything, you should realize that it's the only thing that can change anything. I definitely want you to go to the polling place."

Comedian Seyarogai Oji-san also said this.

Model Lovely also called for action on Twitter.

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The outdoor sportswear brand Patagonia is closing all its directly managed stores on election day to encourage people to go vote.

➡ Here is Patagonia's "voteourplanet" page. You can see messages from Patagonia.

The tapioca shop Tapista is also gaining attention with a campaign where you get half off if you show your voting certificate.

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So, which party should I vote for?

This election determines the members of the House of Councillors, who check bills raised from the House of Representatives.

It is said that you should choose members and parties that can properly analyze and point out the thoughts of the House of Representatives.

You can understand the various parties' viewpoints clearly by looking at this.

<About consumption tax>

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<About the differences between parties>

This is an image from Election.com.

<You can also further your understanding by watching videos of each candidate and party on Twitter.>

➡ You can view only videos here *

There are many diagnostic sites that tell you, "This party matches your opinion!" based on your answers to questions, (they're popular, but)

While this is convenient, it's not comprehensive for all parties, so personally, I believe it's better to search for and find people or parties you want to support.

Mainichi Shimbun's party matching diagnosis ➞

➡︎ Yahoo! party matching diagnosis

How to vote?

① Go to the polling place with your election notification card that was delivered to your home.

(Where you can vote differs depending on your region, so please search for it.)

➁ Even without the notification card, you will be fine as long as you can verify your identity. It doesn't matter if you lost it or forgot it.

③ In this House of Councillors election, there are two types of ballots. You will receive two ballots (one for nationwide proportional representation and one for your electoral district), and you will vote.

On the electoral district ballot, you select and vote for candidates from your electoral district.

On the nationwide proportional representation ballot, you write the name of a candidate running for nationwide proportional representation.

Alternatively, if you cannot choose an individual (there are over 150), you can also vote for a party. In that case, candidates will be elected in order according to the number of votes they receive in that party.

Vote for yourself and your family

There are two days left until the election ends.

Whether it's early voting or on the day itself, it's critical to do some research and vote, or we might find our future terribly bleak...

From my anxiety about this, I asked everyone at marry, "Please go vote before coming to work tomorrow, as I will shift my work hours." and ensured they would participate in voting.

There are frequent discussions about young people distancing themselves from politics... or being indifferent... and while I think that's true, I believe the cause is not us (the young people labeled as politically indifferent).

It is the responsibility of the education system and society that has ingrained in us that "politics is difficult" and "there's no point in expecting politicians."

I truly regret that if there had been adults who said, "You just need to go vote to get the people and parties you can support to change the world!" I might have felt connected to politics from a younger age...

While marry is a wedding idea website and is not at all related to elections or politics, I published this article because I am alarmed that the number of brides who can hold happy weddings is decreasing in a Japan that seems to have a dark future.

Japan is a democratic country. Since it is determined that the people have sovereignty, if we do not vote with intention, it will be subject to the will of others...!

Going to vote is to protect the future of Japan. Recently, I've begun to think it can be a "happy baton."

So, please (no, you must) go vote. Thank you very much.