Polarity (Majoritarian) System: Only one candidate can win.
Proportional Representation: Multiple candidates can win.
Mixed System: Some districts have one winner, others allow multiple winners.
Japan's Current Electoral System
Adopted 1994 (previously the medium-sized election district system - Chūsen-kyūkusei).
Single Non-Transferable Vote (SNTV): Multi-member First Past the Post (FPTP) system.
Example: In a district with three winners, the top three candidates are elected regardless of party performance.
Critics in the 1990s associated SNTV with political issues, leading to reforms.
Structure of Government
Bicameral System:
House of Representatives (Lower House)
465 seats, politicians serve 4-year terms.
Requirements: Must be over 25 years old to run.
House of Councillors (Upper House)
248 seats, politicians serve 6-year terms.
Requirements: Must be over 30 years old to run.
Elections every 3 years (half the members).
Voting System
Each voter has 2 votes per house:
Lower House:
Votes for individual candidates in districts (289 single-member districts using FPTP).
Votes for a party in the regional bloc (176 seats by proportional representation).
Revival Candidates: Candidates that lose in their district can still be elected through closed-list proportional representation.
Upper House:
124 politicians elected every 3 years; voters choose a local candidate and a national party.
148 seats decided at the prefectural level (using SNTV).
100 seats selected at the national level (open-list proportional representation).
Special Priority Section: Introduced in 2018; higher priority for candidates in this section.
Differences in Voting Systems
Closed-List vs. Open-List:
Lower House uses closed-list: party ranks candidates; voters vote for parties.
Upper House uses open-list: voters select candidates or parties directly.
No simultaneous candidacy in both prefectural and national levels for upper house candidates.
Two votes in each house do not affect each other.
Electoral System Summary
Japan's system is mixed-member majoritarian (parallel voting) not to be confused with mixed member proportional representation used in countries like New Zealand and Germany.
Current system has been functioning for nearly 30 years, introduced to improve Japanese politics.
Despite complexities, it aims to provide a fairer representation.