Elections

** The House of Councilors has 252 members, who are elected for six-year terms. Elections are held for House of Councilors seats every three years. In every House of Councilors election, 24 politicians are elected from single seats, 52 are elected from multi-seats, and a varied number elects 50. **
 * The Japanese election system is very different from the American election system. The House of Representatives in Japan has 500 members, who are elected for a four-year term. Three hundred of these members go against each other and the person who gets the most votes wins and becomes the sole representative of that district. The other 200 members in Japan's House of Representatives are elected by the place they are from. **** Voters in a given region vote for a party not for an individual candidate. Each party gives its seats to its top candidates, who are ranked from highest to lowest before the elections. For example, a district with 20 seats available, if a party running 25 candidates gets 50 percent of the vote, the party gets 10 seats in principle and gives them to the top 10 candidates on its list. **



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