Future Society Design Program

Academic Conference on Democracy: Issues Concerning Democracy and Elections in East Asia

Information

The Great East Japan Earthquake and the Covid–19 pandemic have made Japanese people acutely aware of the need to utilize information and communication technology in Japan's democracy. Nevertheless, the digitalization of Japan's democracy has been very slow to take off. In this program, we will explore the factors restraining it from the three perspectives of institutions, awareness, and technology. As part of the program, this academic conference aims to deepen the discussion on the history and current status of democracy and the electoral system in East Asia.

Date

Monday, November 27, 2023 09:50 – 14:50 (JST)

Venue

TOKYO ELECTRON House of Creativity 3F, Lecture Theater, Katahira Campus, Tohoku University [Access]

Invited Speakers

Susumu Annaka (Hirosaki University)
Edmund Cheng (City University of Hong Kong)
Matt Golder (Pennsylvania State University)
Sona Golder (Pennsylvania State University)
Masaaki Higashijima (The University of Tokyo)
Jang Jinhyuk (Kochi University of Technology)
Hirofumi Miwa (Gakushuin University)
Samson Yuen (Honk Kong Baptist University)

Time Schedule

09:50 – 10:00
Opening Remarks
Kazunori Kawamura (Tohoku University)
10:00 – 10:45
Susumu Annaka (Hirosaki University)
Determinants of Voter Turnout in the Prewar General Elections in Japan
10:50 – 11:35
Jang Jinhyuk (Kochi University of Technology)
Authoritarian Institutional Legacy and Government Coalition Formation in post–democratization periods in Asia
11:40 – 12:25
Hirofumi Miwa (Gakushuin University)
Voting for Gender Balancing? Assessing the Effect of Block Vote System on Women's Representation
12:25 – 13:10
Lunch Break
13:10 – 13:55
Masaaki Higashijima (The University of Tokyo)
Election Management, Manipulation Techniques, and Regime Stability
14:00 – 14:45
Edmund W. Cheng (City University of Hong Kong)
Samson Yuen (Hong Kong Baptist University)
The Confluence of the Masses: Power and Contentious Politics in Hong Kong
14:50
Closing Remarks
Yoshikuni Ono (Waseda University)

Discussants

Matt Golder (Pennsylvania State University)
Sona Golder (Pennsylvania State University)

Co–hosted by

  • Graduate School of Information Sciences, Tohoku University
  • NEC Networks & System Integration Corporation