WAKAYAMA -- The Wakayama prefectural chapter of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) sent a letter of protest to the party's headquarters after its election strategy chief suggested that legislator Hiroshige Seko, who left the LDP over a money scandal and was reelected as an independent, could return to the party, the Mainichi Shimbun has learned.

Multiple senior officials confirmed Feb. 10 that the protest letter had been sent. The chapter also criticized the party headquarters for confusing prefectural residents by not having supported Seko in the Feb. 8 House of Representatives election.

Seko left the LDP after being heavily implicated in a slush fund scandal involving party factions. The protest letter pointed out that in the 2024 House of Representatives election, Seko had run against a candidate officially backed by the LDP, and that he had supported rival candidates in the 2025 upper house and local elections in the prefecture, damaging trust with the prefectural chapter.

After Seko won a seat in the Wakayama No. 2 district as an independent in this year's lower house election on Feb. 8, the LDP Election Strategy Committee Chairperson Keiji Furuya commented, "We will need to address this going forward. I think, after following a certain process, it will result in his rejoining the party."

The prefectural chapter's protest letter described these remarks as "deeply regrettable." It noted that it had signed a five-point agreement with Seko in January this year including a pledge to "respect friendly relations with the chapter," but pointed out that the process of rebuilding trust with him had only just begun.

The chapter additionally stated that while the agreement and the fact that the party had not fielded an official candidate in the Wakayama No. 2 district was premised on the party headquarters supporting Seko, the fact that it did not issue its support resulted in the election concluding while leaving the prefecture's residents with a misunderstanding." The chapter said it would again call on party executives and the party ethics committee to respond carefully, taking the chapter's wishes into account.

At a news conference after the board meeting where the agreement with Seko was signed, chapter president Masatoshi Ishida had stated that rebuilding the relationship with Seko would take time, and had stated, "We will move forward step by step, building on each confirmed point." The chapter plans to hold another board meeting soon to discuss the series of events.

(Japanese original by Tomokazu Komaki, Wakayama Bureau)