TOTTORI (Kyodo) -- A town in the western Japan prefecture of Tottori, faced with a staff shortage, introduced an online poll observer on Wednesday for the general election's early voting in what it believes to be a first for the country.

The step by the town of Nambu comes as the prefectural government has been striving not to reduce the number of polling stations due to a lack of poll monitors amid an aging and declining population.

"We are trying to secure opportunities for the town people's to vote amid a rapidly aging society," said an official of the town's election board.

Japan's public offices election law requires two to five election observers to be selected among eligible voters for each polling station to monitor the voting process to ensure a fair election.

In Nambu, a tent was set up on the premises of a community center located in a mountainous area that will serve as a polling station for early voting.

One poll watcher was assigned to the tent to monitor the election in person, and another monitored the process online from a conference room at a town hall some 12 kilometers away.

Kofu town in the prefecture also introduced an online poll observer for early voting in a mayoral election this July, in the first case for a Japanese local election.