Mitsu Kōro ( ja, 紅露みつ; 10 May 1893 – 28 December 1980) was a Japanese politician. She was one of the first group of women elected to the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

in 1946.Otsuka Kiyoe (2008
Japanese Women's Legislative and Administrative Reforms in the Postwar Era
''Bulletin of the Faculty of Education, Kagoshima University'' Aside from a brief spell in 1947, she served continuously in parliament until 1968.

Biography

Kōro was born in Sakamoto in

Gunma Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Gunma Prefecture has a population of 1,937,626 (1 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 6,362 km2 (2,456 sq mi). Gunma Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture and Fukushima ...

in 1893. She attended Kanda Girl's High School in Tokyo, after which she married , who was elected to parliament in

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

. She worked as a journalist. Their son Shinichi was stationed in Hiroshima towards the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and was killed by the atomic bomb dropped on the city. After

, Akira was banned from holding public office. Instead, Kōro contested the 1946 general elections as an independent candidate in Tokushima, and was elected to the House of Representatives.Analysis of the 1946 Japanese General Election
United States Department of State, 1946, p53 She subsequently joined the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

. Although she lost her seat in the April 1947 general election, she returned to parliament after winning a seat in the August 1947

House of Councillors The is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan. The House of Representatives is the lower house. The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre-war House of Peers. If the two houses disagree on matters of the budget, treaties, ...

by-elections. Kōro was subsequently re-elected in

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 cr ...

as a National Democratic Party candidate, and in

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim ...

and

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wors ...

as a Liberal Democratic Party candidate, serving until

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

. She also served as Deputy Secretary of State for Health and Welfare in the second Ichiro Hatoyama cabinet in 1955. In 1965 she was awarded the

Order of the Precious Crown The is a Japanese order, established on January 4, 1888 by Emperor Meiji of Japan. Since the Order of the Rising Sun at that time was an Order for men, it was established as an Order for women. Originally the order had five classes, but on Ap ...

. She died in 1980.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Koro, Mitsu 1893 births People from Gunma Prefecture Japanese journalists 20th-century Japanese women politicians 20th-century Japanese politicians Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) Democratic Party (Japan, 1947) politicians Members of the House of Councillors (Japan) National Democratic Party (Japan) politicians Kaishintō politicians Democratic Party (Japan, 1954) politicians Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) politicians Order of the Precious Crown members 1980 deaths