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Toru Hashimoto, celebrity lawyer, gears up for Osaka gov. race

OSAKA, Japan - Toru Hashimoto (photo), a 38-year-old lawyer and TV celebrity, releases a 17-point election manifesto on Dec. 29 for the Jan. 27 Osaka gubernatorial race. Backed by the Liberal Democratic Party and the New Komeito party, Hashimoto is expected to run primarily against Sadatoshi Kumagai, 62, a professor at the Graduate School of Engineering at Osaka University, who is backed by the Democratic Party and the Social Democratic Party. Fusae Ota, the two-term incumbent governor, has announced she will not seek another term. (Kyodo)