NANMOKU, GUNMA PREF. ¨C Chikara Imai, 73, is quick to dismiss the new parties in Sunday¡¯s national election, saying old ties with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe¡¯s Liberal Democratic Party is what the country¡¯s most elderly village needs for survival.
Nanmoku, 107 km (67 miles) northwest of Tokyo, is at the forefront of the nation¡¯s battle against an aging and shrinking population. Its population has halved over the past 20 years to 1,963, and with a median age of 70.6, Nanmoku is now Japan¡¯s oldest municipality.
Nanmoku and places like it across the country are a key support base for the LDP, which has been in power for most of the past six decades.
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