Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Kazuhiro Haraguchi responded positively Thursday to the proposed granting of voting rights to foreign nationals with permanent residency in gubernatorial, mayoral and local assembly elections.

"Some conclusion should be reached on the matter, and I want to seek a realistic response," he said in an interview with news organizations.

Haraguchi assumed the internal affairs portfolio in Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's Cabinet in mid-September.