Yoshiko Kira (吉良佳子,Kira Yoshiko) is a Japanese politician and member of the House of Councillors since 2013,representing the Tokyo at-large district. She is a member of the Japanese Communist Party.
Kira was born in Kōchi,the daughter of a prefectural assemblyman. She graduated from Waseda University in 2005 and worked for Takara Printing Company for four years before entering politics. [1]
She first ran in the 2009 Tokyo metropolitan assembly elections as a candidate from Toshima City,but failed to win a seat. Her next appearance was in the 2013 House of Councillors election,in which she placed third within the Tokyo at-large district,becoming the first Communist party member to win an at-large district seat in twelve years. [2] One focus of her campaign,along with that of successful JCP candidate Saori Ikeuchi,was the unstable jobs situation faced by young people. [3]
She is a member of the House of Councillors Committee on General Affairs,Special Committee on Political Ethics and Election System,and Commission on the Constitution. [1]
Her husband Yuichiro Matsushima is a member of the Meguro City assembly in Tokyo.