The first race in Osaka's unprecedented Nov. 27 double election kicked off Thursday with seven candidates vying to become governor, three days before the mayoral campaign officially begins.
The gubernatorial election, which has been dubbed the "second battle of Osaka Castle," is considered a two-man race pitting established political parties against a recently formed local group that promotes reform.
The slogan refers to the fact that the Osaka Prefectural Government is based next to Osaka Castle, scene of a historic battle in 1615 that led to the country's unification under the Tokugawa shogunate.