was a Japanese

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

Biography

Aikawa was born in

Urawa, Saitama was a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. On May 1, 2001, Urawa was merged with the cities of Ōmiya and Yono to create the city of Saitama. Since April 1, 2003, the area of former Urawa City has been divided into 4 wards: Urawa-ku, ...

. A graduate of

Keio University , mottoeng = The pen is mightier than the sword , type = Private research coeducational higher education institution , established = 1858 , founder = Yukichi Fukuzawa , endow ...

, he was elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well as ...

of Urawa in 1991 and served for ten years. On 27 May 2001, he was chosen as the first mayor of the city of Saitama, which was founded on 1 May 2001 through the merger of Urawa and two neighboring cities. He governed Saitama for eight years until he lost to

Hayato Shimizu Hayato may refer to: *Hayato (given name), a masculine Japanese given name * Hayato, Kagoshima, a town located in Aira District, Kagoshima, Japan *, people of ancient Japan *Hayato (satellite) Hayato, known before launch as KSAT, or the Kagos ...

in the mayoral election held in May 2009. He died of

respiratory failure Respiratory failure results from inadequate gas exchange by the respiratory system, meaning that the arterial oxygen, carbon dioxide, or both cannot be kept at normal levels. A drop in the oxygen carried in the blood is known as hypoxemia; a rise ...

.初代さいたま市長・相川宗一さん死去　７８歳　浦和、大宮、与野の合併に尽力　政令指定都市の礎を築く

References

* * Mayors of places in Saitama Prefecture 1942 births 2021 deaths People from Saitama (city) Keio University alumni Deaths from respiratory failure {{Japan-mayor-stub