Hajime Hirota

Hajime Hirota
広田 一
Official portrait, 2021
Member of the House of Councillors
Incumbent
Assumed office 22 October 2023
Preceded by	Kojiro Takano
Constituency	Tokushima-Kōchi at-large
In office 26 July 2004 – 25 July 2016
Preceded by	Kojiro Takano
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Constituency	Kōchi at-large
Member of the House of Representatives
In office 22 October 2017 – 14 October 2021
Preceded by	Yūji Yamamoto
Succeeded by	Masanao Ozaki
Constituency	Kōchi 2nd district
Member of the Kōchi Prefectural Assembly
In office 1995–2001
Constituency	Tosashimizu City
Personal details
Born	(1968-10-10) 10 October 1968 (age 56) Tosashimizu, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan
Political party	CDP (since 2020)
Other political affiliations	LDP (before 2001) Independent (2001–2009; 2017–2020) DPJ (2009–2016) DP (2016–2017)
Alma mater	University of Waseda

Hajime Hirota (広田 一, Hirota Hajime, born October 10, 1968) is a Japanese politician of the Constitutional Democratic Party and a member of the House of Councillors in the National Diet since 2023, having previously served from 2004 until 2016. He previously served two terms in the Kōchi Prefectural Assembly from 1995 until 2001.

In 2015 changes to the electoral laws merged Hirota's Kōchi at-large district with the neighbouring Tokushima district, in order to address the problem of disparity in the representation of urban and rural areas. In October 2015 Hirota announced that he would not contest the merged Tokushima-Kōchi at-large district at the 2016 election as a protest against the merger.[1] In June 2016 it was reported that Hirota would instead contest one of Kochi Prefecture's districts at the next House of Representatives election, to be held by the end of 2018.[2] His decision meant that no candidates that contested the new district were born in Kochi Prefecture.

References

1. "民主党・広田氏、「徳島・高知」から不出馬" [Democrat Hirota will not contest Tokushima-Kochi]. Mainichi Shimbun (in Japanese). 1 November 2015. Archived from the original on 5 May 2016. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
2. "参院改選19人が引退・不出馬 江田元議長ら" [19 Councillors to retire or not contest election, including former president Eda]. Nikkei (in Japanese). 2 June 2016. Retrieved 7 July 2016.

• 政治家情報 〜広田 一〜. ザ･選挙 (in Japanese). JANJAN. Archived from the original on 2007-12-08. Retrieved 2007-11-17.