Yokohama mayor Takeharu Yamanaka submitted a resignation letter to the city assembly chair Friday, a move likely to be approved by the full assembly early next month and trigger an election within 50 days.
The move comes after a third-party investigation confirmed seven instances of harassment and demands by three political parties in the city assembly — the Liberal Democratic Party, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP) and Komeito — that he step down.
“I didn’t adequately consider the weight of my words as the mayor of Yokohama, or how my words and actions would be perceived. I have therefore taken the decision to resign,” Yamanaka said Friday afternoon.
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