Shizuoka Prefecture governor Heita Kawakatsu has suddenly resigned from his post.

He was the last roadblock against the Tokyo - Osaka high speed (500 km per hour) maglev shinkansen railway construction. For years he was against the tunnels for environmental reasons. One of the reasons was possibility of tunnels badly effecting ground water. His prefecture fell into a relatively small part of the railway line between Tokyo and Nogaya.

His resignation comes just a days after railway company maglev shinkansen operator JR Tokai announced that the line could not be completed by 2027. It delayed to moving target of 2034. Moving target reason: If Shizuoka Prefecture approved the tunnel today, the earliest date is in 2024.

Heita Kawakatsu was in his 4th term as governor.

Only 1,5 week after railway company announced the delay the governor resigned. Coincidence?

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2024/04/03/japan/politics/shizuoka-governor-maglev/

An editorial (english) at Asahi tells him to admit his mistakes and lamed him for insulting farmers, ranchers and factory workers, referring to his April 1 speech to his own staff where he said "The prefectural office is a think tank. Unlike (people who) sell vegetables, attend to cattle, or manufacture products, you all have brains and are highly intelligent.”

https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15220505