Japanese politician and activist Tomoya Hosoda was BOTD in 1991. Born in Hanno City, Saitama Prefecture, she was assigned female at birth and grew up in Irina City. He studied at Teikyo University, coming out to his family as transgender before her Coming of Age Ceremony. With his family’s support, he underwent gender reassignment surgery in 2015, changing his name and legally registering her gender as male. He continued his university studies and graduated later that year, working as a clinical laboratory technician. In 2016, he returned to Iruma City, with the intention of educating high school students about sexually transmitted diseases. The following year, he was elected to the Iruma City Council as a Democratic Party candidate, becoming Japan’s first openly transgender person elected to public office. He was re-elected as an independent candidate in 2021 and again in 2025. Hosoda lives in Iruma City; his current relationship status is unknown.