国民・玉木氏、「小池人気」の当て外れる 定まらぬ立憲との距離感
国民民主党は、衆院東京15区補欠選挙で小池百合子・東京都知事が支援する作家の乙武洋匡氏を推薦したが、5位に沈んだ。「小池人気」を当て込んだ玉木雄一郎代表の狙いは外れた。一方、ともに民主党を源流とする立憲民主党との距離感も定まらないでいる。
立憲候補に約3万票差で敗れた翌29日、玉木氏は大阪市内での記者会見で「支持者を固め切れなかった」と敗因を語った。
東京15区をめぐり国民民主の対応は二転三転した。当初は独自候補を立て、島根1区と長崎3区で立憲候補を支援する代わりに東京での支援を要請した。ところが、「本人の過去の行為に法令違反の可能性がある」として独自候補の取り下げに追い込まれると、乙武氏の推薦に転じる。立憲が東京15区で擁立した候補は支援しなかった。
知名度の高い小池氏と乙武氏に賭けた形だが、共産党が候補を下ろして立憲と一本化したことへの反発もあった。結果、乙武氏は惨敗。投開票日、玉木氏は記者団の前に現れなかった。一方、立憲は東京15区を含め、補選全勝で勢に乗る。
裏金事件以降、自民党への批判を強める玉木氏は立憲に接近。補選直後にも泉健太代表と連絡を取り合うなど関係構築に動いているが、課題は多い。玉木氏はこの日の会見で、憲法や原発政策で一致しないままでの連携は「結局バラバラになってしまう」とも指摘した。
Vocabulary
Word (Furigana) | JLPT Level | Part of Speech | Meaning |
---|---|---|---|
国民 (こくみん) | N3 | Noun | citizen, people |
民主党 (みんしゅとう) | N3 | Noun | Democratic Party |
衆院 (しゅういん) | N1 | Noun | House of Representatives |
東京 (とうきょう) | N5 | Noun | Tokyo |
補欠 (ほけつ) | N2 | Noun | by-election |
選挙 (せんきょ) | N4 | Noun | election |
支援 (しえん) | N2 | Noun | support |
作家 (さっか) | N2 | Noun | writer |
推薦 (すいせん) | N2 | Noun | recommendation |
沈む (しずむ) | N2 | Verb (godan) | to sink, to go down |
人気 (にんき) | N4 | Noun | popularity |
当て込む (あてこむ) | N1 | Verb (godan) | to count on, to rely on |
狙い (ねらい) | N2 | Noun | aim, goal |
距離感 (きょりかん) | N1 | Noun | sense of distance, relationship |
定まる (さだまる) | N2 | Verb (godan) | to be fixed, to be determined |
立憲 (りっけん) | N1 | Noun | constitutional |
敗れる (やぶれる) | N2 | Verb (ichidan) | to be defeated |
支持者 (しじしゃ) | N2 | Noun | supporter |
固める (かためる) | N2 | Verb (ichidan) | to solidify, to strengthen |
敗因 (はいいん) | N1 | Noun | cause of defeat |
語る (かたる) | N3 | Verb (godan) | to talk, to speak |
対応 (たいおう) | N2 | Noun | response, reaction |
二転三転 (にてんさんてん) | N1 | Noun | changing repeatedly |
独自 (どくじ) | N1 | Noun | original, independent |
候補 (こうほ) | N3 | Noun | candidate |
支援 (しえん) | N2 | Noun | support |
要請 (ようせい) | N1 | Noun | request, appeal |
取り下げる (とりさげる) | N2 | Verb (ichidan) | to withdraw, to retract |
追い込む (おいこむ) | N1 | Verb (godan) | to corner, to drive into a corner |
惨敗 (さんぱい) | N1 | Noun | crushing defeat |
投開票日 (とうかいひょうび) | N1 | Noun | election day |
Grammar and Sentence Structure
- The sentence “立憲候補に約3万票差で敗れた翌29日、玉木氏は大阪市内での記者会見で「支持者を固め切れなかった」と敗因を語った。” is difficult to understand because of the complex structure and grammar used.
Grammatical points:
- に: In this sentence, 立憲候補に is used to indicate the target of the action, meaning “lost to the constitutional candidate by about 30,000 votes.”
- 翌: This is a prefix that means “the following” or “next.”
- で: In 大阪市内で, で is used to indicate the location where the action took place, meaning “in Osaka city.”
Structure of the sentence:
- The sentence starts with the time phrase “立憲候補に約3万票差で敗れた翌29日” (the following day after losing to the constitutional candidate by about 30,000 votes), followed by the subject 玉木氏 (Mr. Tamaki) and the action verb 語った (spoke). The direct quote “支持者を固め切れなかった” (could not solidify the supporters) is included within the sentence to explain the reason for the defeat.
- The sentence “東京15区をめぐり国民民主の対応は二転三転した。” is difficult to understand due to the idiomatic expression used.
Grammatical points:
- をめぐり: This is a phrase that means “regarding” or “concerning.”
- 二転三転: This is an idiomatic expression that means “to change repeatedly” or “to flip-flop.”
Structure of the sentence:
- The sentence starts with the topic 東京15区 (Tokyo’s 15th district), followed by the subject 国民民主 (National Democratic Party) and the action verb は (marked with は). The action 対応 (response) is described as 二転三転した (fluctuated or changed repeatedly) to convey the idea that the party’s response regarding Tokyo’s 15th district kept changing.
- The sentence “立憲が東京15区で擁立した候補は支援しなかった。” is difficult to understand due to the passive voice and the use of multiple verbs.
Grammatical points:
- が: In 立憲が, が is used to mark the subject of the sentence, meaning “the Constitutional Party.”
- で: In 東京15区で, で is used to indicate the location where the action took place, meaning “in Tokyo’s 15th district.”
- は: In 候補は, は is used to mark the topic of the sentence, meaning “the candidate.”
- しなかった: This is the negative past tense form of the verb 支援する (to support).
Structure of the sentence:
- The sentence starts with the subject 立憲 (Constitutional Party), followed by the action verb 擁立した (fielded or put forward) and the location 東京15区で (in Tokyo’s 15th district). The candidate 候補 is marked with は, and the action verb 支援しなかった (did not support) is used to describe the party’s lack of support for the candidate.
Quiz
Test your comprehension of the article!