Local and regional elections

The study was conducted in Japan in 1963 and the 2,426 respondents came from four geographic districts: the metropolitan Tokyo area, the five largest cities in Japan, other smaller cities in Japan, and Japanese towns and villages. The study investigates Japanese awareness of four different types of recently held elections: gubernatorial, prefectural assembly, mayoral, and city (ward, town, or village) assembly. Variables ascertain the respondents' voting patterns as well as factors which influenced their vote. Further questions probe awareness of the election campaigns through official campaign bulletins, speeches, radio and television broadcasts, and newspaper advertisements. The respondents' knowledge of the candidate for whom they voted is also explored. A final section of the study contains questions about politics in general, including the respondents' awareness of bribery, collusion, or violation of election laws, and their opinion of the trend toward party-affiliated, rather than independent, candidates in local politics.