Photo/Illutration A voter casts a ballot in the Tokyo metropolitan assembly election at a polling station in Chuo Ward on June 22. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Rinzei Yamagishi, 18, who became a university student this past spring, cast a vote for the first time in the Tokyo metropolitan assembly election on June 22.

He said he was “thrilled” as he headed to the polling station, trying to decide whom to vote for and feeling like a fully fledged member of society.

As he had no party preference, it wasn’t easy to choose one.

He’d listened to candidates’ campaign speeches, but he found most to be the same. No candidate stood out, nor was there anyone with whom he could agree on all issues.

“The only way I could decide was by the process of elimination,” he said. After he voted, it even felt a bit anticlimactic, he added.

I met Yamagishi for the first time on election day, at an informal vote-counting event that evening. The venue was the Democracy Museum, which opened in Tokyo’s Ota Ward last month. About a dozen young people had gathered to discuss the election results.

“Will the overconcentration (of population and power) in Tokyo advance further if Tomin First no Kai (Tokyoites First Party) gains more seats?” someone asked.

“I’m a Liberal Democratic Party supporter, but I believe the party deserves to be defeated this time,” remarked another, while yet another lamented, “Can’t anyone do anything about the rising cost of living?”

With everyone speaking their minds and having a good time, the event was more like a watch party for a sports event. Every time the latest election returns were announced, the conversation became livelier.

We are taught about the election system in detail at school, but we don’t have many chances to learn how to engage in politics.

“I’d like election-related conversations to become more common in our day-to-day lives,” said Yuki Murohashi, 36, the director of the Democracy Museum.

If people can talk about elections as a matter of course at their places of work or school, and discuss politics openly without anonymously slandering individuals, I am sure the foundations of democracy will stand to gain greater strength.

When I asked Yamagishi how he felt about the event, he replied with a big smile, “It was fun sharing different opinions with people.”

—The Asahi Shimbun, June 24

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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