Yoshimi Watanabe

Yoshimi Watanabe (Japanese渡 辺 喜 美, Watanabe Yoshimi, born March 17, 1952 in Nishinasuno (Today Nasushiobara ), Tochigi Prefecture) is a Japanese politician, and since 1996 member of the Shūgiin, of the House for the third constituency Tochigi and chairman of Minna no Tō. He left in January 2009, the Liberal Democratic Party ( LDP), for which he was from 2007 to 2008 Minister in the Cabinet.

Life and career

Watanabe studied law at Chuo University, where he graduated in 1979. Previously he studied until 1977 at the Faculty of Economics and Political Science, Waseda University. In 1983 he was secretary to his father, the Shūgiin deputies, Minister of International Trade and Industry and later Foreign Minister Michio Watanabe. After his death in 1995, he took over his constituency in the 1996 election Shūgiin. Until the " Katō Rebellion " of 2000 Watanabe belonged to the ETO - Kamei faction.

Prime Minister Abe Shinzō Watanabe appointed in December 2006 to succeed the retiring due to a donations scandal Minister of deregulation, Gen'ichirō Sata. In the reshuffle in August 2007, Watanabe was then Minister of State for the financial sector, a month later he was in the Cabinet Yasuo Fukuda also the responsibilities for administrative reform and "Reform of the civil service " ( kōmuinseido kaikaku ). In a cabinet reshuffle in August 2008, he was by Toshimitsu Motegi (LDP, Tsushima faction ) replaced.

On 24 December 2008 Watanabe agreed in Shūgiin against his group for a motion by the opposition Democratic Party to dissolve the Chamber and early elections. He justified his step so that elections are the only way to resolve the political deadlock ( Nejire Kokkai ). Watanabe explained subsequently, to want to stay in the LDP, if he is not excluded. But he ruled out the possibility not to leave even the LDP and to found a new party. 25 December 2008 Watanabe received a complaint that the zweitmildeste of eight possible sanctions in the LDP.

On 13 January 2009, he left the LDP with reference to the policy of Prime Minister Asō. For the 2009 election Shūgiin he founded in August 2009, the Minna no Tō ("Party of all " ), which contested with 14 candidates. At its inception, three former MPs and the MPs Keiichiro Asao Sangiin, who had been expelled in July from the Democratic party involved. The Minna no Tō has seen several electoral success under Watanabe since 2009: So she was in the 2010 Election Sangiin third largest party in the proportional representation and moved in 2011 into several prefectural parliaments.