For 158 years, Tokyo has stood as Japan\u2019s glittering capital, a world-famous nexus of food, culture, business and government.<\/p>\n
But Tokyo might soon get an understudy. Japan\u2019s legislature recently passed a bill<\/a> to create a secondary capital that would serve as an alternate center for the government\u2019s operations, ensuring continuity in the case of a natural disaster or other emergency.<\/p>\n With hundreds of millions of dollars potentially in the offing, and the chance for tax breaks, tourism and urban revival, the plan has set off a frenzy in Japan. Thirteen local governments have already entered the race, including the business hub of Osaka, the southern prefecture of Fukuoka and the northern island of Hokkaido. Even the laid-back, mountainous region of Gunma, home to about 1.9 million people, has thrown its hat into the ring.<\/p>\n Mayors and governors have held flashy news conferences to declare their interest. Osaka has even created a mascot for its bid, a talking \u201cwelcoming cat\u201d<\/a> named Nyaniwa Fukumaru<\/a>.<\/p>\n Masashi Kawai, a senior policy officer at the Tokyo Foundation, a think tank, said the competition had the feel of a grand festival: \u201cA \u2018don\u2019t-miss-the-Gold-Rush\u2019 mentality has taken hold.\u201d<\/p>\n The idea has divided Japanese citizens. Supporters of the plan say that Japan, long prone to earthquakes, typhoons and floods, must be prepared for the possibility that its government offices in Tokyo could become debilitated. Opponents say the idea is a misguided proposal meant to reward allies of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi: One of her closest political partners is the Japan Innovation Party, which has worked for years to establish its home base of Osaka as an alternate capital.<\/p>\n It will be up to Ms. Takaichi to crown the winner. No official timeline has been set, but her cabinet is expected to put together a list of requirements for the secondary capital in the next few months.<\/p>\n Guarding Against Disaster<\/p>\n The idea of a second capital has some precedent in Japanese history. During the Edo period, from 1603 to 1868, Japan had two capitals. Edo, which later became Tokyo, was a political and administrative capital where the shogun ruled. Kyoto was the cultural and spiritual capital, home to the emperor.<\/p>\n In recent decades, the threat posed by natural disasters has led some experts and politicians to revive the idea. Japan is situated along the Pacific \u201cRing of Fire,\u201d<\/a> a chain of seismologically active faults encircling the Pacific Ocean. Experts have warned about the possibility of a so-called megaquake<\/a> in Tokyo and other large cities.<\/p>\n In 2011, a 9.1-magnitude megaquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan killed more than 19,000 people and triggered a nuclear disaster. The quake was a reminder of the vulnerability of Tokyo, which lies about 230 miles southwest from the epicenter.<\/p>\n