For the first time, two women are the leading candidates to be the mayor of Tokyo.
Incumbent Yuriko Koike is seeking her third four-year term as mayor. Her main opponent will be Renho Murata, who served in Japan's upper house of parliament for twenty years.
Both are former television newscasters — and both have served as lawmakers and as government ministers at the cabinet level.
It's unusual for two women to be the front-runners in a high-profile political race in Japan, as the country's political infrastructure is still dominated by men.
Women in Japan did not have the right to vote until 1945 — after the end of World War II.
Today, less than 12% of Japanʻs national Legislature is made up of women. In the United States, that figure is 28%.
This year's Tokyo election is a week from Sunday and carries national political interest, since the incumbent is backed by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
Her top challenger is supported by the main opposition party — the center-left Constitutional Democratic Party.
Some political writers speculate both women may see this race as a springboard to further ambitions and to potentially become Japan's first woman prime minister.
