Photo/Illutration Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike campaigns in Tokyo on July 6. (Natsuno Otahara)

Yuriko Koike, the conservative governor of Tokyo, clinched a victorious third term on July 7 in a crowded election held in sweltering summer heat.

Voters had a record 56 candidates to choose from, of whom former Upper House member Renho posed a serious challenge to her leadership.

Koike, 71, was supported by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, its junior coalition partner Komeito and Tomin First no Kai (Tokyoites First), a regional political party for which she serves as a special adviser.

Renho, 56, was backed by the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, the Japanese Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party.

Renho left the CDP before official campaigning started on June 20. She lost her Upper House seat when she filed her candidacy.

Key election issues included measures to reverse the declining birthrate and a project to redevelop the leafy and popular Meiji Jingu Gaien district that would entail felling hundreds of trees.

Koike emphasized her achievements during her two four-year terms in office, such as hosting the Summer Olympics in 2021 and steering the metropolis through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Surprisingly, she rarely took to the streets to address voters during the 17-day campaign period.

A former LDP Lower House member, Koike made a name for herself in national politics by holding the environment and defense portfolios.

She became the first female Tokyo governor in 2016 and won her second term in 2020.

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