Photo/Illutration Arfiya Eri during the Lower House by-election in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, on April 12 (Daijiro Honda)

One question that followed Arfiya Eri around during the campaign for the Lower House by-election in Chiba Prefecture was: Why are you running for the Liberal Democratic Party?

Eri, whose parents were born in China, can speak several languages, has a wealth of international experience, and seeks diversity in Japanese politics.

To answer that question, she said that being a candidate of the ruling party “means a lot” because “representing various voices within the LDP has a direct bearing on policymaking.”

Eri, 34, became the first Diet member in Japan with Uighur and Uzbek roots by narrowly winning the April 23 by-election in Chiba Prefecture’s No. 5 district, which covers the city of Urayasu, home of Tokyo Disneyland, and part of Ichikawa.

The by-election was called after LDP lawmaker Kentaro Sonoura resigned over a violation of the Political Fund Control Law.

Eri, a newbie with zero experience in politics, gained 50,578 votes, only about 5,000 more than her closest rival, Kentaro Yazaki, 55, from the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.

She was backed in the election by the LDP’s junior coalition partner, Komeito.

Although some supporters of opposition parties said Eri’s manifesto was at odds with the LDP’s traditional stances, she said her role model is slain former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and she is a strong supporter of his policies.

Eri was born in Kita-Kyushu to a Uighur-Japanese father and an Uzbek-Japanese mother.

Her parents were originally from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

Raised in Fukuoka Prefecture, Eri said, “I think of myself only as a Japanese person.”

When she was a child, the family obtained Japanese citizenship. They decided on “Eri” as the family name, using kanji characters that represent “the pride of Uighur people riding horses on the ancient Silk Road where the trading business prospered.”

Eri moved to China when she was 10 years old because of her father’s work.

She attended an American school there and later studied international politics at Georgetown University in the United States.

After completing a graduate school course, she joined the Bank of Japan.

Later, she became a staff member at the United Nations, working on human rights and national security issues in Asia.

When she temporarily returned to Japan in April 2022, she visited LDP heavyweight Taro Kono, another Georgetown alum, whom she had gotten to know through a study group.

He encouraged her to run in the summer Upper House election.

Although she had no experience in politics, Eri quit the U.N. job because she “wanted to reflect diverse opinions in Japanese policies.”

She ran as a proportional-representation candidate of the LDP and collected about 55,000 votes, falling short of winning a seat.

When the LDP publicly sought a candidate to replace the disgraced Sonoura, Eri threw her hat in the ring.

She had no ties at all with the electoral district in Chiba Prefecture, but the party chose her out of 72 applicants.

In addition to seeking diversity in politics, her proposals include increasing national defense spending and revising the Constitution so that it clearly mentions the legal existence of the Self-Defense Forces.

During the campaign, she often said, “People with various backgrounds are facing difficulties in living in Japan.”

As a “single working woman” and a person with foreign roots, “I hope to help make Japanese society friendlier to all Japanese and all people who are based in Japan.”

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