Takashi Kimura (politician)

Takashi Kimura
木村敬
Governor of Kumamoto Prefecture
Incumbent
Assumed office
April 16, 2024
Preceded byIkuo Kabashima
Vice-governor of Kumamoto Prefecture
In office
October 9, 2020 – January 9, 2024
GovernorIkuo Kabashima
Personal details
Born (1974-05-21) May 21, 1974
Tokyo, Japan
Political partyIndependent
Alma materUniversity of Tokyo

Takashi Kimura (Japanese: 木村 敬, Hepburn: Kimura Takashi; born May 21, 1974) is a Japanese politician. He currently serves as the governor of Kumamoto Prefecture since 2024. He previously served as the vice governor of Kumamoto from 2020 to 2024.

Biography

Kimura was born on May 21, 1974[1] in Tokyo.[2][3] He was born without his left wrist after losing it in the womb after being entangled by his umbilical cord.[4][2] In 1987, he entered a private boys' school where he studied middle and high school. He entered the University of Tokyo, Faculty of Law in 1994. He met Ikuo Kabashima, then professor at the University of Tokyo, when he was in his third year. In 1999, he joined the Ministry of Home Affairs and was assigned to Okayama Prefecture, this is also where he also met his wife whom he married three years later. In 2004, he was assigned to Tottori Prefecture, he use manga in developing the community citing that he was inspired by manga artist Shigeru Mizuki.[5][6][2][1]

He worked in various ministries, such as the director of the Public Enterprise Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in 2016, as well as providing support for the victims of the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake.[5][1] He became the vice governor of Kumamoto on October 9, 2020[6][7] until resigning on January 8, 2024. He also retired from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications on January 9. On the same day, he announced he would be running for governor of Kumamoto Prefecture in the 2024 gubernatorial election.[8] He was endorsed by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). He won the election, beating Kumamoto City mayor Masashi Koyama.[9]

On May 1, 2024, it was revealed that he donated potted moth orchids to various acquaintances and medical facilities in Kumamoto City right after winning the election in March, which is illegal under Public Offices Election Act. He defended himself stating that he was only depositing them, and he would retrieve them after moving into the governor's residence, adding that he felt bad throwing them away because his house is too small for them.[7] He said on a press conference on May 10 that "they agree to give them all back" and stating that two of the plants are already back to him.[10]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Purofīru - Kumamoto-ken hōmupēji" プロフィール - 熊本県ホームページ [Profile - Kumamoto Prefecture Homepage]. Kumamoto Prefecture Official Website. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c "Kimura Takashi ofisharusaito | Kumamoto shin jidai, tomoni mirai e" きむら敬オフィシャルサイト | くまもと新時代、共に未来へ [Takashi Kimura Official Site | A new era for Kumamoto, together towards the future]. Takashi Kimura Official Website (in Japanese). Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  3. ^ ""Hatsugen no omomi" to "TSMC" Kumamoto ken no Kimura chiji ni chokugeki intabyū" ｢発言の重み｣と｢TSMC｣熊本県の木村知事に直撃インタビュー ["The weight of the remarks" and "TSMC" direct interview with Kumamoto Governor Kimura]. Nippon News Network (in Japanese). July 11, 2024. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  4. ^ Higuchi, Takuro (August 13, 2025). "Kumamoto daihyō no taisen aite ni chiji ga ēru-ken Gifu-shō shōgai no kyūji "dore dake no doryoku ga atta ka" natsunokōshien" 熊本代表の対戦相手に知事がエール 県岐阜商・障害の球児 「どれだけの努力があったか」 夏の甲子園 [Governor cheers on Kumamoto's opponent at Summer Koshien, highlighting the efforts of Gifu Commercial High School's disabled baseball players]. Kumamoto Nichinichi Shimbun (in Japanese). Yahoo! News. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  5. ^ a b ""Sebun" naze kyūzō? Kumamoto jishin, kensaku kara mieta nīzu" 「セブン」なぜ急増？ 熊本地震、検索から見えたニーズ [Why the sudden increase in "Seven-Eleven" sales? Kumamoto earthquake: Needs revealed through searches]. The Asahi Shimbun (in Japanese). August 29, 2016. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  6. ^ a b "Fuku chiji ni kimura shi shūnin honsha otozure hōfu kataru" 副知事に木村氏就任 本社訪れ抱負語る [Kimura appointed vice governor, visits head office and speaks of his aspirations]. Hitoshi Shimbun (in Japanese). October 10, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  7. ^ a b "Kimura Takashi Kumamoto kenchiji, tōsen-go ni kochōran kubaru "azuketa ninshiki"" 木村敬・熊本県知事、当選後にコチョウラン配る 「預けた認識」 [Kumamoto Governor Takashi Kimura distributes Phalaenopsis orchids after being elected, saying he "deposited them"]. The Nikkei (in Japanese). May 1, 2024. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  8. ^ "Kumamoto kenchiji-sen ni kimura takashi moto fuku chiji ga rikkōho hyōmei…"TSMC shinshutsu no kōka, hakyū sa setai"" 熊本県知事選に木村敬・元副知事が立候補表明…「ＴＳＭＣ進出の効果、波及させたい」 [Former Vice Governor Kimura Takashi announces his candidacy for the Kumamoto Prefectural Governor election... "I want to spread the effects of TSMC's expansion"]. Yomiuri Shimbun (in Japanese). January 10, 2024. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  9. ^ "Kumamoto kenchiji senkyo, jikō suisen no kimura takashi-shi ga hatsu tōsen" 熊本県知事選挙、自公推薦の木村敬氏が初当選 [LDP-backed Takashi Kimura wins first Kumamoto gubernatorial election]. The Nikkei (in Japanese). March 24, 2024. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  10. ^ "Chijin ni jōto no kochōran "kaishū medo" Kumamoto chiji, ihō-sei wa hitei" 知人に譲渡のコチョウラン「回収めど」 熊本知事、違法性は否定 [Kumamoto governor denies illegality of orchids given to acquaintance "with a view to recovering them"]. Sankei Shimbun (in Japanese). May 10, 2024. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.