Posters featuring AKB48 members are being put up around the city to encourage citizens to vote in the Dec 16 Tokyo gubernatorial election. About 100,000 posters and digital splash screens featuring Minami Takahashi, 21, Tomomi Itano, 21, and Yui Yokoyama, 19, are being displayed. Campaigning began Thursday, with nine candidates running.
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titaniumdioxide
Get rid of this girls! What's the use of making a beautiful Aimi Eguchi if you don't use it? And besides Minami Takahashi's nose is so unnatural .
Disillusioned
Well, if AKB48 says voting is good then it must be! Hopefully, this campaign will lift the voter rate to over 50% and get the younger generation in to vote. Gawd help Japan if Abe and his right-wing jiji goon squad of Ishihara and Hashimoto gain power.
nath
Most of them aren't old enough to vote.
nath
But they are old ensought to encourage lazy people like me to vote. I would love one of them to be at the polling station to give me a hand.
some14some
Good entertainment for ineligible voters like me :)
oberst
girls, what do I get if I vote ?
Yubaru
I wonder how much money Akimoto got for letting his girls do this advertising? Or is it really a "public service" announcement?
ObviousDemon
Wow - Nuclear Disaster won't get you to vote, 200+% GDP debt won't get you to vote, but 3 girls in school outfits can 'inspire' you to get out there???
If that's the case, Japan is better off without elections.....
herefornow
OviousDemon - spot on. Japan is in the throes of numerous social, economic and international crises and the powers that be decide to dumb the election down by hiring these bimbettes to encourage people to vote. The country really is hopeless.
vctokyo
well i guess it's better than AKB over 48 oba sans doing the marketing...i can just imagine the oji san's drooling at the voting booths (not a nice sight)
Serrano
"girls, what do I get if I vote?"
Your voice in what goes on in your country?
Fadamor
Pray tell, how does an ad campaign encouraging the people to vote "dumb the election down"? It seems to me the only ones who would be criticizing this are the ones who don't want voters at the polls. The ones who want to perpetuate the apathy are the only ones who would be against such an ad campaign.
Shunsuke Amanai
Tax should be better spent than enriching AKB... What a waste of tax payers' money. ...
GW
I bet if you asked these three if they have voted before themselves I bet out of three HAVENT LOL!
Fadamor
You're right, of course. Most places would do this as a "public service announcement" (i.e. "free of charge"). So how much taxpayer money went to AKB48 because of this? Or are you just assuming they recieved taxpayer money?
GW
oops 2 out of 3 aint voted yet!
gelendestrasse
If the average voter is convinced to vote by an ABK48 poster you have to wonder about the intellegence applied to their choices. But I guess if you're desperate you'll try anything.
YuriOtani
Where does it say they were paid anything?
Fadamor
It doesn't, which was kind of my point when I asked Shunsuke how much they were paid out of taxpayer funds. It seems a lot had been assumed by Shunsuke. As we all know: When you ASSUME, you make an A** out of U and ME!
YuriOtani
Fadamor when you assume in aviation you make an ash out of you and me. Still if the papers run it as public service how much could it cost? It might bring out some people to vote. As if they are smart enough to vote, well that is subjective. The constitution of Japan as well as others does not have a intelligence test for voters. Just that they be Japanese nationals and breathing.
ubikwit
Dumb and dumber and younger and younger...
By all means, Vote!!!
Yubaru
Tens of thousands of dollars at least! 4 color printing on high quality poster paper is NOT cheap. 100,000 copies? That taxpayer money at work for ya!
lostrune2
Wonder what fraction of eligible AKB48 voters would vote................... Any guesses?
cwhite
just a big old game isn't it... what is wrong with Japan? No other countries seem to need to stoop so low...