Reiwa Shinsengumi renames to Inochi no To per official government announcement

The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications and the Central Election Administration Council announced in the Official Gazette dated October 2, 2026, that Reiwa Shinsengumi has changed its party name to the Inochi Party and replaced its representative, Taro Yamamoto, with Joji Yamamoto. The party’s name, abbreviation, representative, the name of the body responsible for selecting candidates, and the selection procedures have been changed collectively, which will directly affect the lists for future national elections and the processing of political party subsidies. The effective date of these changes is listed as August 7, 2026.

The legal basis for the announcement is the Public Offices Election Act (Act No. 100 of 1950). Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Notice No. 371 (Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications Hayayuki Fujii) announced changes to the selection procedures for persons to be listed on the proportional representation lists for the House of Representatives based on Article 86-5, Paragraphs 4 and 5 of said Act. Central Election Administration Council Notice No. 21 (Chairperson of the Central Election Administration Council Masataka Furuya) announced changes to the name and abbreviation of the political party and other political organizations based on Article 86-6, Paragraph 6 of said Act. Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Notice No. 370, dated the same day, announced the same changes regarding the selection procedures for candidates in the single-seat constituencies for the House of Representatives, and Central Election Administration Council Notice No. 22 announced the same changes regarding the descriptions in Central Election Administration Council Notice No. 21.

The name change had already been published in the Official Gazette dated September 18. Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Notice No. 344 (Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications Yoshimasa Hayashi), as a change in the reported items of a political organization based on Article 7, Paragraph 1 of the Political Funds Control Act (Act No. 194 of 1948), lists the effective date of the change in the representative’s name as July 31, 2026, and the effective date of the change in the political organization’s name as August 6, 2026.

Simultaneous Change of Party Name, Abbreviation, and Representative

• Party Name: Inochi Party (formerly Reiwa Shinsengumi)
• Abbreviation: Inochi (formerly Reiwa)
• Representative’s Name: Joji Yamamoto (formerly Taro Yamamoto)
• Effective Date: August 7, 2026

Changes to Candidate Selection Body and Procedures

• Name of the body selecting persons to be candidates: Inochi Party Election Campaign Committee (formerly Reiwa Shinsengumi Election Campaign Committee)
• Selection Procedure: The Election Campaign Committee creates a draft, the representative selects the candidates, and approval is obtained from the Board of Officers (formerly approval was obtained from the General Assembly)
• Legal Basis: Public Offices Election Act Article 86-5, Paragraphs 4 and 5; Article 86-6, Paragraphs 5 and 6
• Applicable Elections: House of Representatives proportional representation elections and House of Representatives single-seat constituency elections

Political Party Subsidies and the Handling of Political Funds

• Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Notice No. 356, dated September 25, ordered the Inochi Party to return 100 yen in political party subsidies based on Article 33, Paragraph 7 of the Political Party Subsidy Act (Act No. 5 of 1994) (the reason being Article 33, Paragraph 2, Item 2 of the same Act).
• In the same notice, the Japan Innovation Party was ordered to return 12,901,707 yen (the reason being Article 33, Paragraph 2, Item 4 of the same Act).
• Expenditures of political party subsidies and the balances of party funds are published separately in the Official Gazette as summary documents of the political fund balance reports, and after a name change, they are processed under the new name.

The significance for voters is not small. The abbreviation “Reiwa,” familiar from ballot papers, election bulletins, and party posters, changes to “Inochi,” and the internal procedures for proportional representation lists and candidate selection are handled by the organization under the new name. Since orders for the return of political party subsidies and the filing of political funds are also processed under the new name, news organizations and election administration practitioners are required to use the new name after confirming its correspondence with the old name.

Source: Official Gazette, October 2, 2026, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Notice No. 371, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Notice No. 370, Central Election Management Committee Notice No. 21, Central Election Management Committee Notice No. 22. Official Gazette, September 18, 2026, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Notice No. 344. Official Gazette, September 25, 2026, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Notice No. 356.