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Supreme Court Sets Sept. 26 Ruling on 2024 Vote-Value Challenge After Declining Grand Bench Review

The move signals likely preservation of lower-court decisions that deemed the election constitutional.

Overview

  • The Second Petty Bench, led by Chief Judge Ojima Akira, set the judgment date and did not refer the case to the 15-judge grand bench or hold further oral arguments.
  • Two lawyer groups sought to void the 2024 lower-house election in 16 suits filed across 14 high courts and branches, arguing the vote-value gap violated the constitution.
  • All 16 high-court and branch decisions upheld the election’s validity after crediting the Diet’s recent corrective measures.
  • The Adams method was applied for the first time in 2024, resulting in a 10-seat increase and 10-seat decrease across single-member districts.
  • The maximum vote-value disparity stood at 2.06 times, illustrated by Hokkaido District 3 with about 461,000 voters versus Tottori District 1 with about 224,000.