Just say NO to election campaign sound trucks!

If you live in an area of Japan with an upcoming election, you probably don’t need me to tell you that campaigning begun for over 100 mayoral posts and assembly seats in more than 300 municipalities yesterday. I myself was alerted to this fact at 8:30am yesterday morning, when a truck drove by my apartment blaring a message over its loudspeakers: “This is candidate XXXX. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!” Noise-polluting speaker trucks are an established part of Japanese elections, and I always wondered why they were tolerated. Does that audio spam work? I wonder if people actually think to themselves, “Wow, Candidate X just drove by announcing their name over a loudspeak so that every house within 4 blocks could hear. I think I’ll vote for him.” Perhaps someone does, since the candidates seem so keen on using such an annoying promotional method.

However, the days of annoying election campaign noise trucks might soon be over (hopefully). Mainichi reports on a group of politicians:

Ten local politicians, mostly those running in the second round of the unified local elections next Sunday, have set up a network opposing the blaring of candidates’ names from loudspeakers on election campaign cars.

“I’ll launch a campaign without using a car that would create noise, emit exhaust fumes and cost taxpayers money,” a 37-year-old candidate, who is running in Tokyo’s Chofu Municipal Assembly election on the ticket of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), said as he launched his campaign.

“Blaring candidates’ names from loudspeakers is a nuisance and its effect is doubtful. We shouldn’t waste taxpayers’ money,” said a 28-year-old candidate in the election for the Kumagaya Municipal Assembly in northern Saitama Prefecture.

He travels through his neighborhood by bicycle asking residents for support. “People speak to me more easily than to candidates riding in campaign cars. I’d like to have closer dialogue with local residents,” said the candidate, who is also a member of the network.

Is this the start of a new trend? We can only hope so.