Polite Japanese Used by Election Candidates#

Candidates running for office use polite and respectful language in a wide range of situations, including campaign speeches, conversations with voters, and media interviews.

The language includes elements of general business keigo, but you’ll also encounter vocabulary, expressions, and speech patterns that are particularly associated with elections and political campaigning.

This makes the manga a useful way to learn how Japanese changes depending on the social and political context.

Source: Suzuki KOichi / Okimoto Shu , Hyōyomi no Victoria (KODANSHA)

Build Your Political and Economic Vocabulary#

Young people who dream of becoming politicians talk passionately about how they want to make society better, discussing current problems as well as their hopes for the future.

As a result, the manga contains plenty of conversations about social issues, politics, economics, and people’s everyday lives. Reading it can therefore provide more than just Japanese practice—it can also give you a chance to learn about contemporary Japanese society while following an entertaining story.

Source: Suzuki KOichi / Okimoto Shu , Hyōyomi no Victoria (KODANSHA)

Why Experience and Connections Still Matter#

Japanese elections have traditionally favored established politicians with years of experience, name recognition, and strong local support networks. For a newcomer, simply having good ideas is rarely enough to overcome these advantages.

This creates one of the central tensions seen in Hyōyomi no Victoria: how can an idealistic candidate turn a vision for a better society into actual votes? The manga makes this gap between political ideals and electoral reality part of its entertainment.

A New Generation of Candidates#

However, the traditional political landscape is gradually changing. In local elections, particularly mayoral races, there have been striking examples of young candidates defeating more established politicians. Younger candidates can appeal to voters who want a fresh perspective rather than another familiar political figure.

Social media has also made it easier for newcomers to communicate directly with voters, reducing their dependence on traditional political networks.

Why Female Candidates Are Attracting Attention#

The growing visibility of female candidates is another part of this change. One reason is that some voters are looking for politicians who seem more closely connected to everyday life and the concerns of ordinary citizens.

There is also a strong desire among some voters for a political image that feels clean, transparent, and less associated with traditional political scandals or corruption. Female candidates can sometimes benefit from this perception, although it is important not to assume that all women in politics share the same image or that voters choose candidates simply because they are women.

The broader trend reflects a desire for something different from the established political culture—and that desire can create opportunities for new candidates.

What This Means for Japanese Learners#

Election-related Japanese is useful because it combines polite speech with vocabulary about politics and society. You will encounter words such as 選挙 (senkyo) “election,” 候補者 (kōhosha) “candidate,” 立候補 (rikkōho) “running for office,” and 有権者 (yūkensha) “voter.”

Campaign speeches and conversations with voters also provide examples of highly polite Japanese, while discussions about social problems, economics, education, and people’s everyday lives introduce a wide range of useful vocabulary.

Through Hyōyomi no Victoria, learners can therefore discover not only how elections work, but also how Japanese society is changing—and how those changes are reflected in the language of politics.

Watch Out for “Fictional Speech Patterns”#

Tsubasa, the skilled election consultant at the center of the story, often ends her sentences with expressions such as 〜わよ and 〜かしら, giving her speech a distinctive, somewhat stylized character.

These are examples of what can be called “fictional speech patterns” (fictional endings): ways of speaking commonly used in manga, anime, and other fiction to make a character’s personality immediately recognizable.

They are probably used here to emphasize Tsubasa’s unique character. However, these speech patterns are not commonly used in everyday real-life Japanese, so learners should be careful about copying them too closely when speaking Japanese themselves.

Source: Suzuki KOichi / Okimoto Shu , Hyōyomi no Victoria (KODANSHA)