A group of anti-US military base protesters take part in a march to mark the 50th anniversary of the US return of Okinawa to Japan, in Tokyo on May 15, 2022. (PHILIP  FONG / AFP)

TOKYO - Okinawa's gubernatorial race kicked off Thursday with the long-running dispute over the controversial relocation of the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma within the southernmost prefecture of Japan to be a central theme to be contested.

In the Sept 11 election, three candidates will be running, namely incumbent Denny Tamaki, 62, backed by the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and other opposition parties, former Ginowan Mayor Atsushi Sakima, 58, supported by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party-led coalition, and Mikio Shimoji, a 61-year-old former lower house member.

Aside from the base issue, Okinawa voters are keen to see more funds injected into the prefecture to tackle child poverty. Okinawa's per capita income remains the lowest among Japan's 47 prefectures

Tamaki is seeking his second four-year term and has vehemently been opposed to the central government's push to relocate the US Air Station Futenma from the densely populated area of Ginowan to Okinawa's Henoko coastal region.

Tamaki since his tenure as governor began, has steadfastly called for the controversial US base to be relocated outside of Okinawa. The tiny subtropical island hosts the majority of US bases in Japan yet accounts for a fraction of the country's total land mass.

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Sakima is in support of the central government's plans to relocate the base, while Shimoji is campaigning for the base to be repurposed into a shared military and commercial airport.

The LDP-led coalition will be hoping Sakima will garner enough support so that the central government's contentious relocation plans can progress smoothly, as local favorite Tamaki's stance on the issue will not change.

The central government maintains the Futenma base relocation plan is the only solution that removes the current dangers posed by the base located in densely populated Ginowan.

The plans stem from a pact made between the US and Japan in 1996, with the coastal region of Henoko being selected as the replacement site in 1999.

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The overall plan for the relocation, however, involves at least 157 hectares of land being reclaimed from pristine waters hosting an extremely delicate ecosystem of the coastal Henoko area and the building of a V-shaped runway.

The local and central governments have long been at odds over the relocation of the base. Local Okinawans want the US base relocated outside the island, or Japan altogether.

The disproportionate number of US bases hosted by Okinawa has long been a source of tension for Okinawa as its local residents have had to endure a near-constant string of US military-linked accidents and mishaps involving aircraft, firing drills and pollution, as well as some heinous crimes involving US military and military-linked personnel.

Aside from the base issue, Okinawa voters are keen to see more funds injected into the prefecture to tackle child poverty. Okinawa's per capita income remains the lowest among Japan's 47 prefectures.

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Other areas of the election's focus will also be the candidates' plans to reinvigorate the island's tourism industry.

As with other tourist hot spots in Japan, Okinawa has suffered financially since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic here owing to falling patronage.