Mr. Furukawa is a member of the House of Representatives from the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). He has served in the Diet for fifteen years since being appointed by Prime Minister Noda as the minister for national policy, as well as minister of state for economic and fiscal policy and for science and technology policy. He served as the deputy chief cabinet secretary in the Kan Administration after serving as the senior vice minister of the Cabinet Office and the secretary-general of the National Policy Unit in the Hatoyama Administration.

Mr. Furukawa is a founding member of the TABLE FOR TWO International non-profit organization dedicated to fighting global hunger and obesity.