The 2025 Osaka Expo ¡ª officially known as the Osaka, Kansai, Japan Expo ¡ª began Sunday, and no one is more relieved, or more concerned about what happens next, than the leaders of Nippon Ishin no Kai.
The Osaka and Kansai-centered national opposition party, whose co-leaders are Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura and Lower House member Seiji Maehara, who represents a district in the city of Kyoto, must figure out quickly how to turn the long-troubled event, plagued by cost overruns, labor shortages and a host of concerns about visitor safety, into a financial and political success.
For Nippon Ishin, the hope is that the expo will not only serve as a boost to the local economy but also act as a national catalyst for economic growth, even helping Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba play the role of international statesman.
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