On November 28, Hirokazu Nakaima, the incumbent governor of Okinawa, won re-election after a very tight competition with his opponent Shoichi Iha, former mayor of Ginowan City. His victory is a sliver of hope for the US and Japanese governments as they continue to try to implement a bilateral agreement relocating the US Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Futenma to an alternate location within Okinawa. However, both governments are likely to continue to face challenges for the foreseeable future in achieving this goal. Yuki Tatsumi explains why this, in turn, will present significant challenges for Tokyo and Washington to identify ways to deepen the US-Japan alliance.

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