Now that the general election has been set for Dec. 16, companies that sell campaign-related equipment are being flooded with calls and orders from municipal election boards as well as the campaign staff of various potential candidates.
"We've been receiving calls nonstop from lawmakers' secretaries," said Junichi Hidaka, 58, head of Kuruma Kojo, a Yokohama-based car dealer that sells and rents election campaign vehicles.
Hidaka said it has received at least 10 inquiries a day since Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda dissolved the Lower House on Friday. It has even received calls from the Kansai region, probably due to the influence of Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party), which was founded by Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto.