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My Profile Top News Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day. Subscribe You are here: Home > News > International > Article Home Business & Finance News U.S. Politics International Technology Entertainment Sports Lifestyle Oddly Enough Health Science Special Coverage Video Pictures Your View The Great Debate Blogs Weather Reader Feedback Do More With Reuters RSS Widgets Mobile Podcasts Newsletters Your View Make Reuters My Homepage Partner Services CareerBuilder Affiliate Network Professional Products Support (Customer Zone) Reuters Media Financial Products About Thomson Reuters Japan turns to campaign gurus ahead of election Fri Jul 24, 2009 3:29am EDT Email | Print | Share | Reprints | Single Page [-] Text [+] By Chisa Fujioka TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese elections are getting a new look as candidates turn to consultants for help with slogans and a warmer personal style to win over increasingly influential floating voters ahead of an August national election. It's all about the "Americanization" of Japanese campaigning, a trend that can be seen in other countries as politicians recognize that high-priced consultants can fine-tune their message and give them an edge at the ballot box. "Campaigns are about appealing to voters, not about meeting the interests of parties or the political situation at hand. I learned this from Americans," said Hiroshi Miura, a consultant who started his career after a trip to the United States to study its campaign system in 1988. "What is obvious to the public may not be obvious to campaign teams. We fill in the gaps." For decades, Japanese politicians were assured victory as long as they promised favors or money to corporations, labor unions and other interest groups in exchange for their support. But with an election rule change and shifts in voting patterns, candidates face growing pressure to appeal to a public increasingly cynical about a political system that has brought Japan four prime ministers in as many years. Voters with no party loyalty now make up around a half of the electorate compared to just 20 percent in the early 1980s, surveys show. Those swing voters, who look for image and policies over personal connections, hold more sway over election outcomes. The trend is already reflected in crumbling support for Prime Minister Taro Aso's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has governed Japan for most of the past half-century but is in danger of losing power in the August 30 ballot. That's where campaign consultants come in. Suggestions to spice up promotion materials and strategies to develop a rapport with voters may tip the balance toward candidates with savvy consultants. More than 1,200 candidates will compete in what is expected to be a close race. COURTING WOMEN VOTERS Miura has advised 240 candidates since 1989. He likens elections to "battles" and says he provides "ammunition" to campaign teams struggling with outdated ideas. "One team wanted a poster with a picture of their candidate with a serious face, thinking voters would be put off with someone smiling when the economy is bad," he said in his office. "I asked: 'Who's going to vote for a face that's frowning?' A young candidate, maybe. But a middle-aged man won't get a single vote." The LDP in the past dominated elections, especially in rural areas, where groups such as farm cooperatives, construction companies and postal workers backed the party in return for subsidies, public works projects and other perks. But a legal change in 1994 replaced multi-member districts with a single-seat constituency system, creating the need for candidates to appeal to a wider audience to win. Continued... View article on single page Share: Del.icio.us Digg Mixx Yahoo! 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