Latest news with #election
BBC News
2 hours ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Guernsey elects first Muslim deputy
The first Muslim deputy in Guernsey has described her journey to office as a "really positive experience".Munazza Malik was elected to join the States of Guernsey after receiving 6,215 votes on Thursday. She said she was "looking forward" to her time in the States and said she would recommend running for election. Ms Malik, who moved to Guernsey five years ago, said: "I feel welcomed, I feel integrated into the community." She added: "I've been here for over five years and I've been part of Women In Public Life since the beginning of last year. "I think that has really encouraged more women like me to understand the local politics and the issues around us, and stand for office." Women In Public Life is a voluntary organisation that formed in 2020 which aims to "inspire and support the women of Guernsey to stand for public office". Discussing how the island can encourage more diversity in the States, Ms Malik said: "I think we need more awareness in the public sector, just reaching out to those communities and making sure they engage in the dialogue. "That's how we make them interested in the local issues and feel welcome." Negative comments David Goy was also elected on Thursday, and he is the island's first deputy of East Asian origin. Discussing his campaign, Mr Goy said he received negative comments about his ethnicity from a "handful" of people."There is just a handful of people who might make certain comments, for example, where you're from but they're not asking a question, they're questioning you and that's a big difference," he said. "There were a few other comments about not being from here and not being local so how can you represent us." But Mr Goy said anyone from a ethnic minority background looking to get into politics should not be concerned by the comment makers. He said: "It's expected but there is so little of them that they're nothing to be concerned about for anyone who's of a different ethnicity and wants to contribute to this island. "I say go ahead and don't let these people be a barrier."
Japan Times
11 hours ago
- Business
- Japan Times
Ishiba handles minority government well over the six-month session
After beginning in January amid concerns of political paralysis under a minority Liberal Democratic Party-led coalition, parliament wraps up Sunday with the LDP and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba showing they can work with opposition parties individually and collectively to pass the budget and select pieces of legislation. With parliamentary business concluding, all eyes are on next month's Upper House election, as the LDP and ruling coalition partner Komeito look to retain their majority, while pocketbook economic issues are at the top of voter concerns. The LDP-Komeito coalition was forced to seek opposition party cooperation following their loss of majority in October's Lower House election, which Ishiba had called. The current session of parliament began with questions about whether the 2025 budget would be passed by April 1, the beginning of the new fiscal year. This deadline put Ishiba in the hot seat, facing questions about whether he had the political skills to convince at least one opposition party to support the ¥115.5 trillion ($738 billion) budget bill in order to get it passed in the Lower House, yet not compromise so much that it angered members of his own party. Ishiba's strategy was to have discussions centered on winning the cooperation of at least one of three major opposition parties: the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Nippon Ishin no Kai and the Democratic Party for the People. In the end, Nippon Ishin, whose leader Seiji Maehara has a good relationship with Ishiba due to their shared love of trains, agreed to support the budget bill after securing a deal with the LDP to abolish the household income cap on eligibility for ¥118,800 in aid for public and private high school students, and to raise the amount of annual aid for private high school students to ¥457,000 per person beginning in fiscal 2026. Both were key Nippon Ishin budget priorities. Though slightly modified in the Upper House — where the LDP and Komeito hold a majority — and sent back to the Lower House, the budget was ultimately approved and went into effect on April 1. Ishiba's friendly relations with Maehara were a big factor in getting Nippon Ishin to agree to the budget. But political journalist Takuya Nishimura says Ishiba also benefited from the inability of the opposition parties to cooperate against the LDP. 'If the opposition parties, with their Lower House majority, had been united in opposing the LDP budget bill, Ishiba would have had to include one of the opposition parties in the ruling coalition, or offer them a Cabinet post to help get it passed,' Nishimura says. Either choice risked creating problems and rivalries for power within the LDP as well as Komeito. Instead, taking advantage of the inability of the opposition parties to band together, Ishiba chose to continue seeking parliamentary cooperation where possible, while keeping opposition parties and members outside the coalition and Cabinet. Ishiba's success with getting the budget passed did not give him much of a political boost, though. By mid-April — after U.S. President Donald Trump's sudden announcement that he would suspend, for 90 days, a 25% levy on Japanese auto imports and a reciprocal 24% tariff on other goods while the U.S. and Japan negotiated the issue — he was looking at an approval rating of just 23.1%. A lack of trust in the Ishiba Cabinet and perceptions of weak leadership in general were cited as reasons for his unpopularity. But there were also calls to lower the consumption tax in the face of Trump's tariff threats and rising prices, something which the LDP resisted. Ishiba did manage to negotiate agreements with different opposition parties on some key pieces of legislation. In April, the CDP, the DPP and Nippon Ishin joined the LDP and Komeito in supporting a cyber defense bill designed to allow the government to respond more quickly to possible cyberattacks from abroad. The CDP also supported an LDP and Komeito-backed pension reform bill that included expanded coverage of the kosei nenkin public pension program to a wider range of part-time and nonregular workers. Other legislative issues, however, proved more contentious. There remains broad disagreement within the ruling and opposition parties over which restrictions to place on corporate political donations and whether they should be banned outright. The discussion has been put off until at least the autumn session of parliament. Likewise, differences between the ruling and opposition parties means that two bills allowing married couples to have different surnames were not voted on in this parliamentary session. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to Constitutional Democratic Party leader Yoshihiko Noda in parliament on June 11. | JIJI Ishiba's political popularity took a hit after his agriculture minister sparked public outrage with a comment saying he had never paid for rice — amid rising prices — and was forced to resign last month. But the prime minister's fortunes improved in late May after selecting agriculture reform-minded Shinjiro Koizumi as the new minister. Koizumi ordered the release of older, cheaper government-stockpiled rice in a move welcomed by consumers. By mid-June, Ishiba's poll numbers were improving. A June 13-16 Jiji Press poll showed a Cabinet approval rate of 27%, a six point increase over the previous month. Despite talk of an opposition-backed no-confidence motion, which Ishiba said would result in a snap Lower House election, the CDP said Thursday it would not submit one. With the Upper House election looming, Ishiba finishes parliament with weak poll numbers for his Cabinet and party. But he also now has a parliamentary record of getting important legislation passed in the more powerful Lower House, and he is further aided by the fact he has no serious challengers within the LDP and the opposition remains divided. That, in turn, gives Ishiba more political breathing room to address controversial pocketbook issues in the coming election, including debates over cutting the consumption tax, the effectiveness of cash handouts and whether to abolish the gasoline tax, all of which are expected to feature across party platforms. 'As long as the LDP does not have a majority in the Lower House, Ishiba seems to be the best leader to deal with the minority government. There is no LDP rival who can deal with the current Lower House situation better than Ishiba,' says Nishimura.
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Case 'ready to give back'
OTTUMWA — The second Ottumwa mayoral candidate has formally announced a run, and maybe a historic one at that. Brenda Case, who spent almost 30 years working for the Iowa Judicial Branch, kicked off her candidacy Thursday on the steps of Ottumwa City Hall, looking to become what may be the first woman mayor in the city's history. But that is not why she's running. A long career allowed her to help people from all walks of life, and now she wants to continue that effort in a new capacity. "I thought for several years that I could contribute something to the city, and I think I'm good at removing obstacles so people can get their jobs done," Case said. "I love my town. I could have lived anywhere in the state, but I picked Ottumwa because it's great. It's low-key and there's history here." Case joins Ben Foote as the only candidates so far to succeed Rick Johnson, who will not run for a second term as mayor. The mayor's seat and a majority of the city council seats will all be on the ballot in November. (This is a developing story and will be updated)
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Did you vote matter in Oregon's 2025 special election? Mandatory recounts say yes
More than 30 races from the May 20 special election are too close to call, triggering an automatic recount. 'I hear from a lot of people that they think their vote doesn't matter, and here we have the undeniable proof that it does," Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read stated in a news release. "These elections will have a major impact on Oregonians lives, from deciding how we manage our water to how we run schools and fight wildfires — and they'll be decided by just a few votes." In Lane County, the South Lane School District Position 7 was one of those too-close-to-call races. The two candidates are tree service business owner Bill Parsons and retired Weyerhaeuser millwright and current SLSD board member Jeff Gowing. Gowing was appointed to the vacant SLSD seat in 2024 and is a former mayor of Cottage Grove. According to Lane County's certified final election results, Gowing won over Parsons by just two votes out of 3,855. There were also three write-in votes. The recount for SLSD will begin on June 18. According to the Secretary of State's Office, automatic vote recounts in the state of Oregon are required when: There is a tie between candidates. The vote margin is very close. Specifically, when the difference between the apparent winning candidate and the next is 0.2% or less. All recounts in the state of Oregon must be hand-recounted by a counting board. A counting board consists of a minimum of two county electors, and the electors must be registered with different political parties. Many of the recounts have already begun. Here is a list of all the races that required a recount from the 2025 special election. Baker County West Eagle Valley Water Control District, at-large position. Clatsop County Seaside Rural Fire Protection district, director, position 2. Arch Cape Domestic Water Supply District, commissioner, position 2. Coos County Bunker Hill Rural Fire Protection District, position 3. Shelley Rd-Crest Acres Water District, position 3. Crook County Juniper Canyon Water Control District, position 4. Deschutes County Laidlaw Water District, Director, position 3. Grant County Grant County Transportation District. John Day Rural Fire District. Monument Cemetery District. Long Creek School District, Position 5. Gilliam County Rock Creek Water Control District Director Zone 2. Rock Creek Water Control District Zone 3. Klamath County Two director positions in the Modoc Point Sanitary District. Lake County Christmas Valley Rural Fire Protection District, Director, position 3. Christmas Valley Park and Recreation District, Director, position 5. Lane County Dexter Sanitary District, Director, position 3. Dexter Sanitary District, Director, position 5. River Road Water Control, Directors, position 1-5. South Lane School District, Director, position 7. Linn County Denver-Conner Water Control District position 6. Little Muddy Creek Water Control District position 3. Little Muddy Creek Water Control District position 5. Tillamook County Ballot Measure 29-183 Nedonna Rural Fire Protection District – director, position 4. Beaver Water District – commissioner, position 4. Twin Rocks Water District – commissioner, position 4. Cloverdale Sanitary District – director, position 3. Umatilla County McKay Dam Fire, position 5. Milton-Freewater Valley Ambulance District, position 5. Wasco County Tygh Valley Rural Fire Protection District, position 1. Miranda Cyr reports on education for The Register-Guard. You can contact her at mcyr@ or find her on Twitter @mirandabcyr. This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Oregon 2025 special election mandatory recounts triggered
Wall Street Journal
a day ago
- Politics
- Wall Street Journal
Here's What to Know About NYC's Democratic Candidates for Mayor
It's crunch time for the Democratic candidates looking to unseat Eric Adams as New York City's next mayor. Early voting is under way ahead of the June 24 primary. It is a ranked-choice election, where voters pick and rank multiple candidates. A candidate needs to receive 50% of the first-choice votes to win on the first count.
