SHINJO, Okayama Prefecture—Surrounded by 1,000-meter-tall mountains, a man in a white T-shirt basked in the openness—both physical and mental–of this village of about 700 residents.

“(This village) has the wisdom for living on friendly terms both with nature and with people,” Tacaquito Usui said in an election speech given in front of media cameras on Aug. 25. “It will become a super interesting place if only it is well-cultivated.”

Usui, a 52-year-old farmer, is one of the few openly transgender individuals to have run for mayor of a municipal government in Japan. The official campaign period started on Aug. 25.