To present this issue, instead of a PDF, we launched a text-based microsite with every candidate’s information. However, at first glance, this website is in complete darkness with no comprehensible information/hierarchy available. All election information is written in black text on a black background. This site expresses the state for visually challenged, who cannot obtain information despite the information being there. First, the sighted visits the website hoping to obtain necessary election information, but experience inconvenience instead by not obtaining anything. Soon after, the sighted understands this situation “replicates” the current state of the visually challenged, which eventually makes them realize the deepness of this unknown human rights problem. Nonetheless, through special software that vocalizes the non-visually information on the HTML, the visually challenged access the content without difficulty. By switching the positions of sighted and visually challenged, we provided a solution, and raised awareness about this overlooked information gap.

Prior to the Election, the microsite was launched containing comprehensive candidate information. This website has two objectives. 1): Let the sighted people realize this unknown human rights problem. 2): Enable the visually challenged to smoothly access necessary candidate information. To achieve them, we collaborated with various visually challenged people, and their supporting organization, experts in public welfare to ensure usability for the visually challenged. The UX/UI and the “audible experience” of the website improved through numerous discussions and mockups. Moreover, not just the candidate information, but further enriched the microsite experience by adding detailed personal information of the candidates, comparable policy check sheet among various parties, questionnaires obtained from the parties, and specially written columns about the election to ensure pleasant audible experience.

June 22(THU), 2017: Microsite launch

June 28(WED), 2017: Comprehensive candidate information published

July 2(SUN), 2017 Election & vote count

July 3(MON), 2017: Preliminary election results posted

This campaign achieved phenomenal results.

•Achieved +250 media coverage including a major news program in Japan. Overall media impression totaled +257,300,000JPY(Approx. 2,330,000USD).

•People voiced their opinion regarding the issue of information disparity of the visually challenged on social media. Politicians approved this project and claimed to resolve this information disparity.

•Subsequently, every major political party promised to resolve this information disparity regarding the visually challenged people face.

•As a result, the voting rate in Tokyo increased by 17.9% than the previous election, and became the highest voting rate in the past 5 years. Early voting rate increased by 51.0% than the previous election. The number of votes casted became the highest ever in history.

•+1,200,000 page views in 10 days since the launch.

•+6349% higher traffic than past similar website released by Yahoo Japan Corporation.

•The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is working to change the voting regulations.