1920 Japanese general election explained

Election Name:1920 Japanese general election
Country:Empire of Japan
Type:parliamentary
Previous Election:1917 Japanese general election
Previous Year:1917
Election Date:10 May 1920
Next Election:1924 Japanese general election
Next Year:1924
Seats For Election:All 464 seats in the House of Representatives
Majority Seats:233
Image1:Takashi Hara posing.jpg
Leader1:Hara Takashi
Party1:Rikken Seiyūkai
Last Election1:38.80%, 165 seats
Seats1:278
Seat Change1:113
Popular Vote1:1,471,728
Percentage1:55.77%
Swing1:16.97pp
Leader2:Kato Takaaki
Party2:Kenseikai
Last Election2:35.94%, 121 seats
Seats2:110
Seat Change2:11
Popular Vote2:715,500
Percentage2:27.11%
Swing2:8.83pp
Image3:Inukai Tsuyoshi.jpg
Leader3:Inukai Tsuyoshi
Party3:Rikken Kokumintō
Last Election3:9.68%, 35 seats
Seats3:29
Seat Change3:6
Popular Vote3:140,397
Percentage3:5.32%
Swing3:4.36pp
Prime Minister
Before Party:Rikken Seiyūkai
After Party:Rikken Seiyūkai

General elections were held in Japan on 10 May 1920.[1] The result was a victory for the Rikken Seiyūkai party led by Hara Takashi, which won 278 of the 464 seats.

Electoral system

Following electoral reforms in 1919, the 464 members of the House of Representatives were elected in 295 single-member constituencies, 68 two-member constituencies and 11 three-member constituencies. Voting was restricted to men aged over 25 who paid at least 3 yen a year in direct taxation, reduced from 10 yen in the 1917 elections, increasing the proportion of the population able to vote to 6%.[2]

Notes and References

  1. Thomas T Mackie & Richard Rose (1991) The International Almanac of Electoral History, Macmillan, p281
  2. Mackie & Rose, p276