Photo/Illutration Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki and his supporters react at his campaign office in Naha after his re-election became certain shortly after 8 p.m. on Sept. 11. (Shoma Fujiwaki)

NAHA--The central government on Sept. 12 said its position on its U.S. military base relocation project in Okinawa Prefecture remains unchanged despite the overwhelming re-election of Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki the previous day.

“The central government declines to comment on the outcome of the election because it is a verdict handed down by Okinawans,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said.

Tamaki has long opposed the central government’s project to relocate the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan to the Henoko district of Nago, both in the prefecture.

Matsuno reiterated the central government’s longstanding position on the issue.

“We believe that relocating the Futenma facility to Henoko is the only solution,” he said.

Tamaki, 62, who was backed by the opposition bloc, garnered 339,767 votes, outpacing his main rival, Atsushi Sakima, a former Ginowan mayor, who gained 274,844 ballots.

Sakima, 58, was endorsed by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, Komeito.

Mikio Shimoji, a former Lower House member and the third candidate in the governor’s race, gained 53,677 votes.

Voter turnout was 57.92 precent, the second lowest for an Okinawa gubernatorial election. The rate was down 5.32 points from the previous race in 2018.

“I am determined to work to resolve the U.S. base issue so that Okinawan children will be left with peaceful skies,” Tamaki told reporters after his victory became certain. He was referring to the numerous accidents involving U.S. military aircraft in the prefecture.

But the prefectural government’s prospects for winning court battles against construction of the new base off Henoko remain slim, experts said.

“Our opposition to the new base has not weakened even slightly,” Tamaki said. “We want to appeal to the United Nations and the international community how irrational and unfair the Henoko base project is to islanders.”

During the campaign, Sakima clearly supported the base relocation project, saying he could secure funds from the national coffer to revitalize the local economy by cooperating with the central government.

He said after the election that he has “no clue” if that support led to his defeat.

In the previous election, in which he lost to Tamaki, Sakima blurred his stand on the base issue to avoid upsetting voters who opposed the relocation plan.

However, other factors worked against Sakima in the latest race.

Just before the start of campaigning, it was revealed that Sakima had attended several meetings of organizations related to the Unification Church, a group under fire over its methods of collecting donations from followers.

The LDP is reeling from reports that dozens of its lawmakers have ties to the Unification Church and its affiliates.

But Sakima’s campaign office denied that his connection to the church was the sole cause of his defeat.

“We cannot say that it had no impact on the outcome, but it is not the only reason,” a campaign official said.

In other good news for Tamaki, Kaiza Uehara was elected in the Okinawa prefectural assembly by-election in Sept. 11, allowing a pro-Tamaki group to retain a majority in the assembly.

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