Copyright (c) Pacific Affairs. All rights reserved. Delivered by Ingenta to: Curtin University Library IP: 134.7.93.129 on: Tue, 09 May 2017 03:21:13 © Pacifc Afairs: Volume 90, No. 1 March 2017 7 The Politics of LGBT Policy Adoption: Shibuya Ward’s Same- Sex Partnership Certifcates in the Japanese Context Yasuo Takao Abstract This article will examine the determinants of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) policy adoption in Shibuya, one of the twenty-three city wards of Tokyo, by taking an actor-specifc approach to the frst case of ofcially recognized same-sex partnership in Japan. How did the sexual minority issue become the subject of ofcial agendas? How did actors both inside and outside the municipal government seize agenda-setting opportunities for government action? The results indicate that key policy makers’ entrepreneurship played a primary role in the ofcial recognition of same-sex partnership by linking policy solutions with agenda-setting opportunities. This analysis demonstrates that the adoption of municipal LGBT policy does not necessarily refect the redistribution of non-material resources, such as citizen values, but rather resembles the patterns of welfare politics. Keywords: LGBT, same-sex partnership, sexual minority, morality politics, Shibuya, Japan DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5509/20179017 Introduction O n March 31, 2015, Shibuya, one of the twenty-three city wards of Tokyo, passed the Ordinance for Promoting Respect of Gender Equality and Diversity in the Ward. Article 10 introduces the issuance of “same-sex partnership certifcates” for the frst time in Japan. Why did Shibuya adopt the same-sex partnership policy when it did? There are three Yasuo Takao is a senior lecturer of political science in the Department of Social Sciences and Security Studies, Curtin University, Australia. His current research interest resides in the area of societal transnationalism at the grassroots level in Japan. His latest publication is Japan’s Environmental Politics and Governance: From Trading Nation to Eco-Nation (Routledge 2016). Email: y.takao@curtin. edu.au * The author would like to gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Ken Hasebe, Shūji Minato, and Susan Takao.