７月参院選、「合憲」７件目　１票の格差で東京高裁

　「１票の格差」が最大３．０３倍だった７月の参院選は投票価値の平等に反し違憲だとして、弁護士グループが選挙無効を求めた訴訟の判決で、東京高裁の木納敏和裁判長は１４日、「合憲」と判断し、請求を棄却した。一連の訴訟で合憲判断は７件目。
　木納裁判長は判決で、国会の議論内容から「格差是正を志向する姿勢が失われたとまでは認められない」と指摘。最大３．００倍だった２０１９年の前回選挙からの拡大幅はわずかで、国会の取り組みの継続も期待されるとして、「違憲の問題が生ずる程度の著しい不平等状態にあったとは言えない」とした。
　比例代表候補者を個人の得票数にかかわらず優先して当選者とする「特定枠」についても「国政上有為な人材の当選機会を高めることを可能とし、国民の意思を反映しないものとは言えない」と述べた。（2022/11/14-19:08）

Tokyo High Court on Monday became the seventh court to find the House of Councillors election in July constitutional in terms of vote-value disparities.
   The court, meanwhile, rejected the plaintiffs' demand to nullify the results of the Upper House election, in which the maximum vote-value disparity between prefectural constituencies was 3.03 times.
   The ruling was the 15th decision on a total of 16 lawsuits filed with high courts and high court branches across the country by two groups of lawyers.
   So far, one court has said the election was unconstitutional, seven have ruled the poll was held in a state of unconstitutionality, and another seven, including the Tokyo court, found the election constitutional.
   Sendai High Court's Akita Branch in northeastern Japan will be the 16th and last court to give a ruling on the series of lawsuits on Tuesday. The Supreme Court is expected to issue a unified decision later.