Rather than taking a standard public administration approach to local govern- ment, Hijino focuses on the relationship between local and national parties and politicians. This approach generates many new insights and exciting new research agendas. It also makes the study of local government much more relevant to the study of Japanese politics and should thus be of interest to a very wide audience. Steven R. Reed, Professor in the Faculty of Policy Studies, Chuo University. Author of Japanese prefectures and policymaking; “Structure and behaviour: Extending Duverger’s Law to the Japanese case”; and editor/co-author of Japan Decides 2014: The Japanese General Election This book is a masterpiece of Japanese local and multi­level politics in English. Hijino not only shows how intensely integrated intergovernmental relations have been dismantled over the past twenty years, but also clearly analyses how and why this transformation has changed the Japanese polity in comparative perspec- tives. He makes a valuable contribution by introducing the essence of works by Japanese scholars for English readers, as well as by showing the usefulness of regarding Japanese multi­level politics as a case comparable with other industrial- ized countries like Canada and Germany. Satoshi Machidori, Professor in the Faculty of Law, Kyoto University. Author of Shusho Seiji no Seido Bunseki: Gendai Nihon Seiji no Kenryoku Kiban Keisei [The Japanese Premiership: An Institutional Analysis of the Power Relations]; co-author of Nihon no Chiho Seiji: Nigen Daihyosei Seifu no Seisaku Sentaku [Japan’s Local Politics: Continuity and Change in the Presidential System]; contributor of Examining Japan’s Lost Decades Local Politics and National Policy This book is about why and how central and local governments clash over important national policy decisions. Its empirical focus is on the local politics of Japan which has significantly shaped, and been shaped by, larger developments in national politics. The book argues that since the 1990s, changes in the national political arena, fiscal and administrative decentralization, as well as broader socio­economic developments have led to a decoupling of once closely integrated national and local party systems in Japan. Such decoupling has led to a breakdown of symbiotic relations between the centre and regions. In its place are increasing strains between national and local governments leading to greater intra­party conflict, inter­governmental conflicts, and more chief executives with agendas and resources increasingly autonomous of the national ruling party. Although being a book primarily focused on the Japanese case, the study seeks to contribute to a broader understanding of how local partisans shape national policy­making. The book theorizes and investigates how the degree of state centralization, vertical integration for party organizations, and partisan congruence in different levels of government affect inter­governmental relations. Japan’s experience is compared with Germany, Canada, and the UK to explore sources of multi­level policy conflict. Ken Victor Leonard Hijino is Associate Professor at the Graduate School of Law in Kyoto University, Japan. Routledge Contemporary Japan Series 58 Decision-Making Reform in 64 Social Inequality in Post-Growth Japan Japan The DPJ’s Failed Attempt at a Transformation during Economic Politician­led Government and Demographic Stagnation Karol Zakowski Edited by David Chiavacci and Carola Hommerich 59 Examining Japan’s Lost 65 The End of Cool Japan Decades Ethical, Legal, and Cultural Edited by Yoichi Funabashi and Challenges to Japanese Popular Barak Kushner Culture Edited by Mark McLelland 60 Japanese Women in Science 66 Regional Administration in and Engineering Japan History and Policy Change Departure from Uniformity Naonori Kodate and Kashiko Shunsuke Kimura Kodate 67 Japanese Media at the 61 Japan’s Border Issues Beginning of the 21st Century Pitfalls and Prospects Consuming the Past Akihiro Iwashita Katsuyuki Hidaka 68 Intercultural Communication 62 Japan, Russia and Territorial in Japan Dispute Theorizing Homogenizing The Northern Delusion Discourse James D.J. Brown Edited by Satoshi Toyosaki and Shinsuke Eguchi 63 Fukushima and the Arts in 68 Local Politics and National Japan Policy Negotiating Disaster Multi­level Conflicts in Japan and Edited by Barbara Geilhorn and Beyond Kristina Iwata-Weickgenannt Ken Victor Leonard Hijino Local Politics and National Policy Multi-level Conflicts in Japan and Beyond Ken Victor Leonard Hijino First published 2017 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2017 Ken Victor Leonard Hijino The right of Ken Victor Leonard Hijino to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. With the exception of Chapter 1, no part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Chapter 1 of this book is available for free in PDF format as Open Access from the individual product page at www.routledge.com. It has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution­Non Commercial­No Derivatives 4.0 license. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging- in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested ISBN: 978­1­138­64041­2 (hbk) ISBN: 978­1­315­63663­4 (ebk) Typeset in Galliard by Wearset Ltd, Boldon, Tyne and Wear Contents List of figures viii List of tables ix Acknowledgements x Introduction 1 1 Theories of local power and multi­level conflict 14 2 Local autonomy and partisan linkages in post­war Japan 35 3 Campaigning against the capital: multi­level conflicts within the LDP 57 4 The politics of local opposition: multi­level conflicts under the DPJ 80 5 Governors and governments: multi­level policy conflicts between executives 100 6 Multi­level conflicts in Canada, Germany, and the UK 128 Conclusion 149 Index 162 Figures I.1 Structure and overview of book 8 1.1 Local autonomy and partisan congruence shaping multi­level conflict 27 2.1 Regional inequality as measured by per capita prefectural income 36 2.2 Perceived expansion of regional inequalities in Japan 37 2.3 Ratio of locally raised revenues, current account to expenditure, and debt­to­expenditure for prefectural governments 41 2.4 Proportion of all incumbents, LDP incumbents, and first­time candidates for the House Representative with experience in local politics (prefectural or municipal) 48 2.5 Partisan affiliation of governors (LDP, non­LDP, or Independent) 51 2.6 National volatility vs local stability in electoral outcomes for the LDP and main opposition party 52 3.1 Strength of LDP and main opposition party for prefectural legislatures 59 3.2 Frequency of articles reporting on written opinions passed by prefectural legislatures 63 3.3 Frequency of written opinions passed by prefectural legislatures 64 5.1 Career backgrounds of governors 101 5.2 Changing frequency of meetings between PM and governors 104 5.3 Frequency of meetings between PM and governors by location 105 5.4 Proportion of meetings between PM and governors by category 105 5.5 Proportion of meetings between PM and governors by category II 107 5.6 Media reporting on governors criticizing cabinet/PM and vice versa 108 5.7 Actions listed on NGA homepage by fiscal year 110 Tables 1.1 Types of multi­level conflict, their features, and examples 29 3.1 Channels of upward influence over national policy for local legislators 60 3.2 List of multi­level policy conflicts over national policy, by frequency of reporting and WOs 66 3.3 Number and frequency of WOs passed by types of prefectures under LDP administrations, between 1987 and 2015 68 4.1 Average number of WOs submitted per prefecture (by strength of LDP in legislature) under DPJ administrations, 2009–2012 86 4.2 DPJ local branch support for key national policies as revealed by WOs 87 5.1 Challenges made by governors against national policy 114 Acknowledgements This book would not have been possible without generous help and advice from many people. I am extremely grateful to Steven Reed, Masahiko Tatebayashi, Satoshi Machidori, Kengo Soga, Naofumi Fujimura, Akira Tsuji, and Yosuke Sunahara for providing immensely useful and thorough reviews of my manuscript drafts. The book also benefitted from presentations at the Association of Asian Studies, Japanese Society for Public Administration, and Kansai Gyosei Kenkyu- kai. I thank panelists and audience for their feedback. I would like to thank Kiyosada Somae, Haruya Sakamoto, and Sato Manabu for introducing me to various interview contacts in Okinawa and other regions at early stages of fieldwork. I am also grateful to various journalists at Ryukyu Shimpo, Okinawa Times, and Hokkaido Shimbun, the research department at LDP headquarters, as well as the research department at the National Associ- ation of Chairpersons of Prefectural Assemblies