Yōichi Masuzoe

Yōichi Masuzoe (舛添 要一, Masuzoe Yōichi; born 29 November 1948) is a Japanese politician. He was elected to the position of governor of Tokyo in 2014. Before becoming governor, he was a member of the Japanese House of Councillors and served as the Minister of Health, Labour, and Welfare.

Before entering politics, Masuzoe became well known in Japan as a television commentator on political issues. He shared his thoughts and ideas with many people through his shows. However, in June 2016, he had to step down from his role as governor because of some problems with using public money.

Early life

Yōichi Masuzoe was born in Kitakyushu in Fukuoka Prefecture on 29 November 1948. He studied law, politics, and history at the University of Tokyo. He also learned to speak English and French well.

After finishing his studies, Masuzoe worked at the University of Tokyo and later studied in Europe at the University of Paris and the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva. He became a popular guest on political talk shows in Japan.

Masuzoe moved back to Kitakyushu in the 1990s to help care for his aging mother. He wrote a book about his experiences caring for her, which became very popular and helped him become well-known across Japan.

Legislative career

Yōichi Masuzoe ran to be Governor of Tokyo in the 1999 election but placed third. He was elected to the National Diet, Japan’s parliament, in 2001, winning with the most votes. He promised to change policies at the Bank of Japan.

In 2006, he helped lead a group working on changing Japan’s Constitution. In 2007, he became Minister of Health, Labour, and Welfare. He worked on solving problems with hepatitis C treatments and pension records.

In 2010, he left his party and formed a new one called the New Renaissance Party. The party focused on changing government rules and reducing the number of lawmakers. Though popular at first, the party did not gain much support. Masuzoe also worked on improving Japan’s relationships with other countries like China and Taiwan. He considered running for governor of Tokyo in 2012 but decided not to.

Governor of Tokyo

Yōichi Masuzoe was seen as a good candidate for the Tokyo governor job in 2014 by two big political groups in Japan. He decided to run for the job even though he wasn't part of a political party anymore. He promised to help make sure the 2020 Summer Olympics happened and to improve services for older people and safety plans.

Masuzoe won the election, but in 2016, people started to complain about how he was using money that belonged to the government. He had used some of this money for personal things like meals with his family and trips. After many people asked him to step down, he decided to leave his job as governor in June of that year. He said he wanted to stay longer to help with the Olympics, but he resigned anyway.

Views

Yōichi Masuzoe wrote articles many years ago sharing his opinions about energy and women's roles in politics. In one article from 1996, he said that nuclear power is very important for the country's energy and defense, and should not be decided by local votes.

In another article from 1989, he made comments suggesting women might not be well-suited for politics. These remarks were later criticized, especially when, as Governor of Tokyo, he laughed along with others during a meeting where a female representative was interrupted with unhelpful comments about having children.

Personal life

Yōichi Masuzoe has been married three times. His first marriage was to a woman from France, whom he met while studying in Europe; they later divorced. He then married a government worker named Satsuki Katayama in 1986, but they divorced in 1989. Katayama later became a member of the Japanese government.

Masuzoe is known to have five children. Some of these children were born with different mothers before he was married to them. One of his children has serious health challenges. Masuzoe enjoys watching horse racing and owned racehorses that won important races in Tokyo in 1997 and 1998. He lives in Setagaya, a part of Tokyo, and also has homes in Yugawara and near Lake Kawaguchi.