Etsuko Kawada, mother of an HIV-infected crusader for justice, and three others filed candidacies Tuesday for an Oct. 22 by-election in Tokyo's No. 21 single-seat constituency to fill a House of Representatives seat left vacant by a disgraced lawmaker.
Former Democratic Party of Japan lawmaker Joji Yamamoto, 38, resigned recently over fraud allegations.
Also standing are Teiko Kudo, a Kokubunji city worker backed by the Social Democratic Party; Akihisa Nagashima, a foreign affairs expert backed by the DPJ; and Sekiichi Kato, a former Tachikawa politician backed by the Liberal Democratic Party.