Komae Mayor to Resign over Sexual Harassment

May 23, 2018

Tokyo- Kunihiko Takahashi, mayor of the Tokyo suburban city of Komae, said Wednesday he will resign to take responsibility for causing confusion in the municipal government due to sexual harassment.

With female officials of the city government claiming under their real names that they were sexually harassed by the mayor, "I have no choice but to admit it," Takahashi told a press conference.

"But yet I don't think I did harassment," he went on to say. "There is a gap in perception."

Takahashi said it may take about two weeks to decide when to leave office, as he needs to consult with his supporters.

Earlier on Wednesday, Minoru Mizuno, deputy Komae mayor, who had been seeking to ouster the mayor, told reporters that the courageous actions of the victims made it unable for Takahashi to stay on.

The outgoing mayor showed intention to apologize to the female officials shortly.

Takahashi, a former Tokyo metropolitan assembly member, was elected Komae mayor for the first time in 2012, supported chiefly by the Liberal Democratic Party. He is currently in his second term. Jiji Press