Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike said Thursday her new upstart Kibo no To (Party of Hope) is in it to win it in next month's national snap election, striving to wrench power from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his ruling party.
"We're not throwing our hats into the ring just to end up becoming an opposition party," Koike told a packed news conference at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo. "This election is about winning power."
At the same time, Koike emphasized that she will for now dedicate herself to her job as the capital's governor, rebuffing widely circulating rumors that she intends to return to the national stage by resigning and running for a Diet seat in the Oct. 22 election.