Socialist Party (Akashi)

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Socialist Party

社会党
𐌲𐌰𐍃𐌰𐌻𐌾𐌰𐍃ᚴ𐌰𐍆𐍄𐍃𐌹𐌸𐌰 𐌳𐌰𐌹𐌻ᚴ𐌾𐍉
AbbreviationSP
Founded1918
Ideology
Political positionLeft-wing to Centre-left
National affiliationPale crimson bloc
Colours  Red
MNAs
64 / 400

The Socialist Party (Miranian: 社会党 Shakaitō; Gothic: 𐌲𐌰𐌼𐌰𐌹𐌽𐌰𐌻𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍃𐌴𐌹𐌽𐌾𐌰 𐌳𐌰𐌹𐌻ᚴ𐌾𐍉 Gamainallaiseinja Dailkjō) is a democratic socialist political party in Akashi.

Established in 1918, it is the second oldest Akashian parties still in existence, and one of two whose existence predates the Akashian Civil War. It has long had a leading role on the Akashian left, for which it has rivaled the Communist Party. It is one of Akashi's most influential major parties.

History

Early years

The party was founded in 1918, through the consolidation of various existing labour, socialist, and social democratic parties.

It aligned itself with the rising labour militancy and revolt against capitalist inequality during the following decades, and by the 1930s it was one of Akashi's largest parties. It was a bitter enemy of the Futurist Political Party, the leading party of the far-right.

Civil war

During the Akashian Civil War, it joined the United Red Army, which united the left-wing parties against the threat of Political Futurist dictatorship.

The URA largely shouldered the bulk of the battles against the Great Akashi Army, and formed an alliance with the National Renewal Movement. When the GAA had been defeated, the URA was left exhausted by the war, and NRM leader Yurika Ehara seized the advantage. A combination of offensives and generous concessions enabled a peace deal with the URA, leaving her the victor of the civil war.

Wilderness period

The failure to win the civil war was a traumatic event for the SP that shaped its post-war development. In the Constituent Assembly election of 1940, it won only 21,7% of the vote and 27 party seats, coming second behind the National Union.

During the 1940s and 1950s, the party languished around 10% of the vote in general elections, and closely competed with the Communist Party in provincial and prefectural elections. It was a pioneer in creating the koenkai system, which subsequently spread among opposition parties struggling to make headway against the NU's dominance, and the NU itself.

The acrimonious conflict between the SP and CP, which had fallen out after the civil war, contributed to the left's woes. The SP was particularly frustrated with the CP's dithering on the question of peaceful or violent revolution. In the 1960 presidential election, the CP, WP, and SP jointly endorsed a United Left candidate, who finished second with what was then the best opposition performance against Yurikara.

The SP took part in the United Opposition electoral alliance of 1962, which ended in animosity and gained the party 11 seats, far below its customary performance. The mid-to-late 1960s saw a growing reconciliation between the SP and the now-reunited CP. The internal debate about whether to focus on opposing the Yurika Ehara government or strategically cooperate with it in light of its dominant position grew more heated.

The Summer of Freedom proved a turning point for the SP. The brewing conflict between its "revolutionary" and "reformist" factions came to a head at its 1968 convention, where the "revolutionary" faction triumphed under Tarō Yukimura's leadership. The party supported the protests and later condemned the "Lunatic Faction". It joined Yurikara's national unity government during the crisis, its first participation in a national government.

Government and opposition

The fall of the National Union as a major party in 1972 enabled other parties to surge. The SP won a plurality in the National Assembly, which it maintained throughout the decade.

The SP led a series of leftist coalitions during the 1970s, which took advantage of the "siege economy" to push through radical leftist policies. Notable achievements included strengthening the cooperative sector and power of trade unions, increasing the role of economic planning, and drastically reducing inequality and poverty. Notable challenges included sustained labour militancy, despite the party's ostensibly good relations with the Sōhyō, and problems with inflation and balance of payments.

The "black budget" of 1977 unleashed further turmoil in the party. One faction that opposed the budget split off to form the Justice Party, while the new leader Yumiko Nagatsuki attempted to back off from the radical measures of her predecessor Kasumi Kuroki, but was constrained by a loss of majority in 1978, forcing her to rely on either CP or independent support.

The SP lost power in 1980, and was relegated to opposition against the Ran Tsukuda government during the 1980s. Its then-leader Kagehisa Ueki believed that the party had to moderate its image to regain support, and sought to move it towards the centre. However, this strategy failed: the SP was devastated by the "blue wave" of 1986, and many disillusioned supporters began to switch to the CP instead.

Eclipse period

The SP's setbacks and missteps during the 1980s left it ill-prepared to confront the neoliberal conspiracy, and instead the CP seized the mantle of leftist leadership. It fell to third place in the "red wave" of 1990, and joined the CP-led coalition of Shinobu Furukawa as a junior partner.

Membership of Shinobu's coalition put an end to the party's moderation attempts, and throughout the 1990s it placed itself firmly on the left and gave greater attention to the syndicalist elements of its platform. However, there was still a perception, and fear, that the SP was now becoming eclipsed by the CP as the undisputed leader of the Akashian left. This fear took its toll on Shinobu's last term, as the SP surpassed the CP in 1998 but remained a junior coalition partner. The JP voting to reunite with the SP further boosted the party's prospects.

The SP became the largest opposition once again from 1999 as the CP returned to its traditional status as the third-largest party in the National Assembly. However, the party's leadership proved no match for the centre-right governments led by a returning Ran Tsukuda and Anna Carbone. Another ill-fated moderation attempt allowed Liana Ferrari's United Reform Party to challenge the party with a strong right-wing socialist campaign, causing the disaster of 2006, where the party fell to fourth place against another "blue wave".

Resurgence

With poor prospects and an upcoming general election, the party elected Kōko Kaga as its leader. This proved to be a masterstroke: Kōko caused a surge in the party's popularity, an effect nicknamed "Kōkomania". She turned the 2010 general election into a "red wave", with the party winning 210 seats out of 400 — its highest ever tally, and the first single-party majority since 1970.

In office, Kōko pursued a program of "21st century socialism", with flagship policies including the conversion of the welfare system to a basic incomenegative income tax model, growing the cooperative sector, increased decentralised planning, and increasing the public's role in self-governance and economic planning. Several of these were enshrined in the constitution after a successful 2011 referendum.

The SP lost its majority in 2014, but remained the largest party in the National Assembly, and continued in office in coalition with the Green Party, National Cooperative Party, and National Union.

It lost the 2022 general election, and now provides outside support to the Mizuki Kōhara cabinet, a first in its history.

Platform

The SP is a democratic socialist and syndicalist party. It supports the socialisation of the economy, workers' self-management, and a robust social safety net. Its ultimate goal is to overcome capitalism and create an egalitarian society.

Historically, the SP favoured strong economic interventionism and redistribution of income and wealth policies, which earned it criticism from the left as "state socialist" and neglecting opportunities to transform the economy. In response to these criticisms, it has increasingly shifted towards a greater emphasis on cooperativisation and decentralised planning since the 1990s.

Over the years, the party's platform has changed to adapt to the emergence of new issues and leftist formations: the New Left in the 1960s, environmentalism in the 1970s, e-democracy in the 1990s, and the just transition in the 2010s.

The party maintains a close relationship with the Sōhyō, although its traditional role as the political arm of the labour movement has been challenged by the Communist Party and Green Party.

Election results

National Assembly

Election Party list Constituency Seats +/– Status
PR votes % STV votes %
1940 356.131 21,7%
27 / 245
Increase 27 Opposition
1942 176.112 10,0%
21 / 200
Decrease 6 Opposition
1946 213.833 10,2%
21 / 200
Steady Opposition
1950 248.318 10,4%
22 / 200
Increase 1 Opposition
1954 295.483 10,2%
21 / 200
Decrease 1 Opposition
1958 344.955 10,5%
22 / 200
Increase 1 Opposition
19621 1.227.100 32,5%
11 / 200
Decrease 11 Opposition
1966 409.873 10,0%
22 / 200
Increase 11 Opposition (1966–1968)
Coalition (1968–1970)
1970 574.612 12,0% 551.290 11,5%
22 / 200
Steady Coalition
1972 1.126.301 22,5% 1.383.493 27,7%
40 / 200
Increase 18 Coalition
1974 1.053.552 20,4% 1.492.626 29,0%
45 / 200
Increase 5 Coalition
1978 1.107.620 20,0% 1.401.838 25,2%
35 / 200
Decrease 10 Coalition
1980 592.372 10,5% 675.499 12,0%
21 / 200
Decrease 14 Interim
1982 669.088 11,6% 690.655 12,0%
71 / 400
Increase 50 Opposition
1986 624.735 10,5% 595.643 10,0%
41 / 400
Decrease 30 Opposition
1990 598.658 9,5% 711.305 11,3%
40 / 400
Decrease 1 Coalition
1994 653.521 10,2% 733.509 11,5%
44 / 400
Increase 4 Coalition
1998 1.100.748 16,7% 949.254 14,4%
72 / 400
Increase 28 Coalition
1999 999.573 15,8% 839.414 13,3%
77 / 400
Increase 5 Opposition
2002 1.082.476 16,2% 902.380 13,5%
74 / 400
Decrease 3 Opposition
2006 518.071 7,7% 557.773 8,3%
32 / 400
Decrease 44 Opposition
2010 2.953.606 39,0% 3.233.400 42,6%
210 / 400
Increase 178 Government
2014 1.610.851 20,5% 1.612.429 20,5%
100 / 400
Decrease 110 Coalition
2018 1.301.030 16,4% 1.268.415 16,0%
75 / 400
Decrease 25 Coalition
2022 1.129.934 14,2% 1.116.656 14,0%
64 / 400
Decrease 11 Outside support

1 Result for the whole United Opposition, consisting of the SP, Liberal Party, National Democratic Party, Communist Party, Workers' Party, and Social Credit Party.

Presidency

Election Candidate First round Second round Result
Votes % Votes %
1940 Kozue Yajima 330.706 20,2% Lost
1945 Kozue Yajima 287.347 15,3% Lost
1950 Nobuhisa Miyata 305.262 12,8% Lost
1955 Toshinobu Kuno 334.512 11,5% Lost
19601 Yoshinaka Hashi 722.838 20,4% Lost
1965 Saba 539.825 13,6% Lost
1970 No candidate
1975 No candidate
1980 Shimei Yukimori 1.118.281 19,8% Lost
1985 Masashi Yukimura 1.424.890 24,5% 2.108.904 38,0% Lost
1990 Kazuki Ōshiro 522.692 8,5% Lost
1995 Shintarō Araki 767.439 12,1% Lost
2000 Kōsaku Ayuzawa 2.818.912 45,5% 3.834.846 61,0% Won
2005 Kōsaku Ayuzawa 3.054.966 47,3% 3.880.233 60,6% Won
2010 Kyōichi Hirayama 2.168.731 28,7% 3.675.317 50,0% Lost
2015 Kyōichi Hirayama 1.737.855 22,5% 2.778.514 37,0% Lost
2020 Satoru Katayama 2.000.244 24,3% 3.043.810 36,4% Lost

1 United Left candidate, jointly endorsed with Workers' Party and Communist Party.

Provincial assemblies

Prefectural assemblies