Tomikazu Fukuda has been re-elected to a fourth term as governor of Tochigi Prefecture, defeating a newcomer supported by the Japanese Communist Party.

Fukuda, 63, backed by Komeito and the local chapter of the Liberal Democratic Party, won Sunday's race with support from commerce and agricultural organizations.

He pledged to promote local businesses and enhance child-rearing support.

The 64-year-old challenger, Toshiharu Kobayashi, stressed he would demand the central government exclude a town in Tochigi from a list of candidate sites for nuclear waste disposal.