Dissolution request

A type of direct petition under the Local Autonomy Act, it allows the dissolution of an assembly during its term of office to be carried out by the consensus of the residents when the assembly as a whole goes against the will of the residents. In Japan, petitions for dissolution include petitions to hold the assembly as a whole responsible for corruption and other issues, as well as petitions that serve as an alternative to local referendums to ask the residents for their opinion on individual policies such as municipal mergers, and even petitions by residents to dissolve an assembly when there is a conflict between the head of the local government and the assembly.

When signatures of at least one-third of the eligible voters are collected (due to a 2002 amendment to the law, if the total number exceeds 400,000, as an exception, the number obtained by multiplying the excess by one-sixth and adding together the number obtained by multiplying 400,000 by one-third) the number of eligible voters is collected, the question of whether to dissolve the assembly is put to a vote by all eligible voters, and if the majority of voters agree to dissolution, the assembly is dissolved (Local Autonomy Law, Articles 76 to 79).
[Kazumasa Inaba]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

地方自治法上の直接請求の一種で、議会が全体として住民の意思に反するとき、任期中の解散を住民の総意によって行わせるもの。日本における解散請求は、汚職などについて議会全体の責任を問うもののほか、市町村合併などの個別政策について住民の意思を問う住民投票に代替する機能を有するもの、さらには、首長と議会とが対立したときに、住民が議会の解散を請求してその争いを解決するというものまで含んでいる。

　選挙権者の3分の1（2002年の法改正により、その総数が40万を超える場合には、特例として、その超える数に6分の1を乗じて得た数と40万に3分の1を乗じて得た数とを合算して得た数）以上の署名が集まった場合に解散の当否が選挙権者全体の投票に付され、その過半数が解散に同意したとき、議会は解散される（地方自治法76条～79条）
［稲葉一将］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例