The election was initially expected to be a de facto referendum on the anti-nuclear policies pursued by Gov.

The pro-nuclear camp will be represented by Hideyo Hanazumi, who is endorsed by the governing LDP and Komeito.

[5] In contrary to the policy of the parties that endorsed him, Hanazumi followed the opposition's line on nuclear energy, not unlike the one held by the incumbent governor.

He vowed to continue Governor Yoneyama's approach on the issue of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa power plant restart and related safety evaluations.

In his victory speech, he also mentioned the possibility of resigning and holding another election mid-term to ask the populace whether the reactor should be restarted or not.