Court voids poll in western Japan constituency

OKAYAMA, Japan - Lawyers smile outside the Okayama branch of the Hiroshima High Court on Nov. 28, 2013, after the court ruled that the result in the Okayama constituency in July's House of Councillors election should be invalidated due to an unconstitutional disparity in the weight of votes. The decision is the first ruling among 14 similar lawsuits filed with high courts across Japan by groups of lawyers, who have argued the disparity up to 4.77-fold in the July 21 upper house election is against the equal-protection clause under the Constitution.

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