The (a more accurate translation of the Japanese name would be "Social People's Party", but this naming is common in English texts) was a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

between 1926 and 1932. Amongst the three main proletarian parties in Japan at the time, the Social Democratic Party occupied a rightist position.

History

The party was founded on December 5, 1926, by the

Japan General Federation of Labour Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea in th ...

(''Sōdōmei''), other trade unions and the Independent Labour Association, an organization of moderate leftist intellectuals.

Abe Isoo was a Japanese Christian socialist, parliamentarian and pacifist. He largely contributed to development of baseball in Japan, and was called "Father of Japanese baseball." He created a baseball club of Waseda University. Early life and educa ...

was elected chairman of the party.

Suzuki Bunji was a Japanese politician and labor activist. He founded the Yūaikai, an organization for laborers. Early life and education Suzuki was born the oldest child of Suzuki Masuji on September 4, 1885 in what is now Kurihara, Miyagi prefecture. ...

, Nishio Suehiro, Katsumaro Akamatsu, Shimanaka Yuzō and Kagawa Toyohiko were Central Committee members of the party. The elements which formed the new party had belonged to the

Labour-Farmer Party The was a political party in the Empire of Japan. It represented the left-wing sector of the legal proletarian movement at the time.Mackie, Vera C. Creating Socialist Women in Japan: Gender, Labour and Activism, 1900–1937'. Cambridge: Cambri ...

, which opposed the inclusion of leftists in the latter party. ''Sodomei'' and other trade union had pulled out of the Labour-Farmer Party on October 24, 1926.Beckmann, George M., and Genji Okubo.
The Japanese Communist Party 1922–1945
'. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press, 1969. pp. 101–102Wakukawa, Seiyei.
Japanese Tenant Movements
', in ''Far Eastern Survey'', Vol. 15, No. 3 (Feb. 13, 1946), pp. 40–44 However, only four days after its foundation the new party suffered its first split, as leftwing socialists broke away and formed the

Japan Labour-Farmer Party The was a socialist political party in Japan between December 1926 and December 1928. During its existence, it occupied a centrist position in the divided socialist movement. Foundation The Japan Labour-Farmer Party was one of several proleta ...

. In March 1927 the

General Federation of Japanese Peasant Unions The was a farmers' organization in Japan. The organization was formed on March 7, 1927. It was an initiative of the Social Democratic Party to gain ground amongst the peasantry.Beckmann, George M., and Genji Okubo. The Japanese Communist Party 1922 ...

was formed as the agrarian wing of the party. () was a farmers' organization in

.Beckmann, George M., and Genji Okubo.
The Japanese Communist Party 1922–1945
'. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press, 1969. p. 103 A women's organization linked to the party, the Social Women's League, was founded in November 1927. It changed its name to Social Democratic Women's League in July 1928. Regarding the Chinese question, the party opposed the policies of the Japanese government, demanding a recognition of the

Nanking Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yan ...

government and encouragement of the Three Principles of

Sun Yat-sen Sun Yat-senUsually known as Sun Zhongshan () in Chinese; also known by Names of Sun Yat-sen, several other names. (; 12 November 186612 March 1925) was a Chinese physician, revolutionary, statesman, and political philosopher who founded the Republ ...

. In May 1927 the Social Democratic Party sent Miyazaki Ryusuke and Matsuoka Komakichi to

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

, where they met with Chiang Kai-shek. A solidarity agreement between the Social Democratic Party and the

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...

was signed. Miyazaki Ryusuke left the party in 1929, forming the National Democratic Party. The party won two seats in the 1930 national election. The party merged with the

National Labour-Farmer Masses Party National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

in July 1932, forming the Social Masses Party.Mackie, Vera C.
Creating Socialist Women in Japan: Gender, Labour and Activism, 1900–1937
'. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. p. 132

History

Election results

References

Further reading