Photo/Illutration Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike responds in an interview after her re-election is assured at 8:12 p.m. on July 5. (Toshiyuki Hayashi)

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike enjoyed support from a wide range of voters who approved of her handling of the COVID-19 pandemic to easily win re-election on July 5, an Asahi Shimbun exit poll showed.

The poll, conducted the same day, found 80 percent of those who support the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, Komeito, and 54 percent of unaffiliated voters voted for Koike.

She also drew votes from 29 percent of supporters of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and 17 percent of supporters of the Japanese Communist Party.

One of her main rivals, Kenji Utsunomiya, former chief of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, was backed by main opposition parties, including the CDP and the JCP. While 49 percent of CDP supporters and 67 percent of JCP supporters cast their ballots for Utsunomiya, 15 percent of unaffiliated voters voted for him.

Another rival, Taro Yamamoto, head of the Reiwa Shinsengumi political party, garnered votes from 95 percent of supporters of his own party, but only 12 percent of unaffiliated voters.

Taisuke Ono, a former vice governor of Kumamoto Prefecture, was backed by Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party). While Ono gained votes from 54 percent of Nippon Ishin supporters, only 10 percent of unaffiliated voters voted for him.

The poll also showed 64 percent of respondents said they approve of Koike’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak and 75 percent of them cast their ballots for her. The votes of 34 percent who don't like her handling of the crisis were split among her main rivals: 27 percent voted for Utsunomiya, 25 percent for Yamamoto and 17 percent for Ono.

Respondents were asked to choose from three choices for whether to host the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, which were postponed to next summer due to the pandemic. Thirty-seven percent said the Games should be canceled, 36 percent want them to be held next summer and 25 percent said they should be postponed again.

While 71 percent of those who chose holding the Games next summer voted for Koike, she also gained votes from 39 percent of those who favored cancellation and 57 percent of those who preferred a second postponement.

The poll, conducted at 60 polling stations, obtained valid responses from 2,755 voters.

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