POLITICAL posters are divided precisely into eight squares on the corner of every neighbourhood. Such order and uniformity belies the confusion which surrounds tomorrow's elections, when 500 seats in the Lower House of Representatives will be filled.
Extraordinary changes have taken place in Japanese politics recently, not least the introduction of a new system of regional proportional representation combined with single seats constituencies. Traditional parties have suffered mass defections to newer parties other parties have disappeared or changes their names.
The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), formed last week by a variety of splinter members of various existing parties and independents, became the latest in a series of new political parties to be launched.
Voters are left wondering who, or what, many of the candidates represent.
The current ruling coalition, headed by Prime Minister, Mr Ryutaro Hashimoto, is made up of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), the Socialist Democratic Party (SDP), and the New Party Sakigake (NPS). The LDP had traditionally held a monopoly on power and can claim responsibility for bringing economic success and prosperity to Japan. With recent scandals, however, support for the LDP has weakened.
In an electoral district in northern Japan, support for the main opposition, the New Frontier Party (NFP), is so complete that an LDP chapter of 400 people has been reduced to 22. There is no longer even an LDP representative.
Disillusionment and distrust of politicians among the voters is widespread. The former senior official of the Health and Welfare Ministry, arrested last week on charges of professional negligence resulting in the death of two men from AIDS, who were administering HIV tainted blood products, has provoked indignation. The people of Okinawa, long angered by the presence of the US military in Okinawa, decided they would stand up for their rights when two US soldiers raped a Japanese schoolgirl in Okinawa last year, and are pushing for change.
Reform of administrative structures is also called for in a government which has so far been powerless to deliver any form of compensation or help to many of the victims of the Kobe earthquake. The Sarin gas attacks orchestrated by Asahara's Aum Shinrikyo which killed people last year, were another disaster for the government, with much evidence now indicating that earlier warning signs were there.
The likelihood of any political party gaining a majority is slim, and if any party is to claim a hold on power it will have to form a coalition.
Mr Hashimoto has said that his party plans to maintain its partnership with the SDP and the NPS to assure his re-election as prime minister after the elections. He has also suggested the possibility of ties with the newly inaugurated DPJ and even with some members of the main opposition New Frontier Party (NFP).
It is interesting that in the 10 day run up to the elections, NHK, Japan's public broadcasting network, has decided not to air the opinions of the voters.