Governor of Tokyo

The Governor of Tokyo (東京都知事) is the head of government of Tokyo.

In 1943, upon the unification of Tokyo City and Tokyo Prefecture, the position of Governor was created. The current title was adopted in 1947 due to the enactment of the Local Autonomy Law.

Overview
The Governor of Tokyo is the head of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and is elected by the citizens of Tokyo Metropolis every four years, most recently in the 2024 Tokyo gubernatorial election.

As Tokyo has the largest economy and population in the country, government policies can greatly affect national affairs, giving a governor significant influence in the country and a louder voice in the National Governors' Association.

The annual budget of Tokyo is about 13 trillion yen, ten times that of other prefectures and comparable to the national budget of Indonesia, so a governor also has a great deal of influence in the national economy. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has more than 160,000 employees, making it by far Japan's largest employer.

Qualifications
Candidates must be a citizen of Japan and be a resident of Tokyo for more than three months, and must be over the age of 30. Candidates must also put up three million yen to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, which will only be returned if they receive at least 10% of the votes.

Appointed, Tokyo Prefecture (1869–1943)

 * Karasumaru Mitsue (1868)
 * Ōki Takatō (1868–1869)
 * Mibu Motoosa (1869–1871)
 * Yuri Kimimasa (1871–1872)
 * Ōkubo Ichiō (1872–1875)
 * Kusumoto Masataka (1875–1879)
 * Matsuda Michiyuki (1879–1882)
 * Yoshikawa Akimasa (1882–1885)
 * Watanabe Hiromoto (1885–1886)
 * Takasaki Goroku (1886–1890)
 * Marquis Hachisuka Mochiaki (1890–1891)
 * Tomita Tetsunosuke (1891–1893)
 * Miura Yasushi (1893–1896)
 * Marquis Koga Michitsune (1896–1897)
 * Viscount Okabe Nagamoto (1897–1898)
 * Koizuka Ryū (1898)
 * Baron Senge Takatomi (1898–1908)
 * Hiroshi Abe (governor) (1908–1912, 1st time)
 * Hiroshi Abe (1919–1921, 2nd time)
 * Usami Katsuo (1921–1925)

Appointed, Tokyo Metropolis (1943–1947)

 * Shigeo Ōdachi (1943–1944)
 * Toshizō Nishio (1944–1945)
 * Hisatada Hirose (1945–1946)
 * Shōhei Fujinuma (1946)
 * Haruo Matsui (1946)
 * Seiichirō Yasui (1946–1947)
 * Kazumi Iinuma (1947)