Osaka City 's current mayor is Tōru Hashimoto who had resigned as Osaka governor in 2011 to run in the mayoral election against incumbent Kunio Hiramatsu . Hashimoto won a clear victory even though Hiramatsu was supported by the established parties including the Japanese Communist Party who had for the first time since 1963 not nominated their own mayoral candidate to prevent Hashimoto 's alleged " fascist , dictatorial " policies . As mayor , Hashimoto supports the implementation of the Osaka Metropolis plan , opposes unions particularly the unions of public sector workers ( local public servants union , teachers union , transportation workers union ) , and has taken an anti-nuclear stance in the energy policy debate after the earthquake in 2011 . While Hashimoto 's reformism is popular among his supporters not only in the city or the prefecture but nationwide ( where he and his party threaten to contest elections if the national Diet obstructs his reforms ) , opponents see him as a populist and criticize his leadership style as authoritarian , also referred to as " Hashism " ( ハシズム )
earthquake in 2011
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
Politics of Osaka City