[Politics, That Day...] Was There a General Election Where Seoul Was Easier Than Gyeongbuk for Conservative Parties?

18th General Election, Hannara Party Seoul Candidates' Election Probability 83.3%, Gyeongbuk 60%... New Town Wind Sweeps Even Traditionally Strong Democratic Party Areas

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Jeong-min] ‘Politics, That Day…’ is a series planning corner that looks back on Korean politics through the ‘recollection of memories’ related to notable scenes, events, or figures.

Parliamentarian Badge Changed to Hangul

Until that day, no conservative party had ever won more than 30 seats in Seoul in the history of general elections. Even after that day, it never happened again. This is about that day, which is recorded as the greatest victory in the history of the conservative parties that have maintained their lineage. That day was April 9, 2008, the date of the 18th general election.

Seoul was not an easy region for conservative parties, which have evolved through Minjungdang, Minjadang, Shinhangukdang, Hannara Party, Saenuri Party, and Liberty Korea Party to the current United Future Party. The relatively weak regional color and the large number of young residents were also reasons why conservative parties struggled.

However, the 18th general election was different. The Hannara Party won in 40 out of 48 constituencies in Seoul. They swept not only the traditionally strong Gangnam area but also major districts in Gangbuk, which were considered strongholds of the Democratic Party.

Districts such as Mapo Gap (Kang Seung-gyu), Mapo Eul (Kang Yong-seok), and Dobong Gap (Shin Ji-ho) ended with victories for the Hannara Party. In particular, the defeat of Kim Geun-tae, the incumbent Unified Democratic Party candidate, by Shin Ji-ho of the Hannara Party in Dobong Gap came as a shock.

Candidate Kim Geun-tae received 46.16%, and candidate Shin Ji-ho received 48.04%, with Shin winning the election. Politician Kim Geun-tae is a symbolic figure known as the godfather of the democratization movement. Although there were predictions that the Democratic Party would struggle in the 18th general election in 2008, there were also many expectations that Kim Geun-tae would be elected.

However, contrary to these expectations, politician Shin Ji-ho became the winner in Dobong Gap, the stronghold of politician Kim Geun-tae.

It is noteworthy that the 18th general election cannot be seen as a landslide victory for the Hannara Party. Although they exceeded 150 seats, the number of seats won was lower than expected. A landslide was anticipated, and the election was focused on how much of a victory would be achieved.

The 18th general election was held immediately after President Lee Myung-bak’s inauguration. The ruling party had a favorable momentum, but noise surrounding candidate nominations hindered the Hannara Party. In fact, pro-Park (pro-Park Geun-hye) candidates ran as part of the Pro-Park Alliance and as pro-Park independents and performed well.

On the 15th, the ballot boxes arrived at the counting center set up at the Multipurpose Badminton Gymnasium in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, where the 21st National Assembly elections were held. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Out of 15 constituencies in Gyeongbuk, the Hannara Party won 9 seats, independents won 5 seats, and the Pro-Park Alliance won 1 seat. The Hannara Party secured 60% of the constituencies in Gyeongbuk, a traditional stronghold. Although this was a good result, it did not meet expectations.

An interesting point is the election results in Seoul. The Hannara Party won 40 out of 48 constituencies in Seoul, achieving a winning rate of 83.3%. This means Seoul’s results were better than those in Gyeongbuk.

Why did Seoul achieve a record landslide victory in the 18th general election, which was not easy for the Hannara Party? It was closely related to the ‘New Town wind’ that blew strongly in Seoul alongside President Lee Myung-bak’s election.

The New Town whirlwind swept through many constituencies in Seoul, and the Democratic Party struggled to conduct a normal election. Democratic Party candidates had no choice but to support the New Town pledges led by Hannara Party candidates.

Last year, the market capitalization of housing prices in South Korea exceeded 5,000 trillion won for the first time since statistics began in 1995. The ratio of housing market capitalization to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) also rose to the highest level ever recorded. According to the Bank of Korea on the 26th, the nominal housing market capitalization, which is the sum of domestic housing prices at the end of last year, was 5,056.7924 trillion won, a 7.4% increase from the previous year (4,709.6118 trillion won). The photo shows an apartment view from Namsan, Seoul, on the same day. Photo by Kim Hyunmin kimhyun81@

Seoul citizens were filled with dreams of huge development profits and capital gains if the New Town projects were realized. Although there were many obstacles to overcome before New Towns could be realized, ‘rational doubts’ lost their place.

Thus, the Seoul election started and ended with New Town. The 18th general election was a historically significant election in many ways. It confirmed that a specific policy could shake the political stronghold of the opposing party from its roots and proved that rapid changes in public sentiment were possible.

Did the Seoul electorate, swept up in the New Town whirlwind, maintain their stance afterward?

In the 2012 19th general election, the Saenuri Party also won more than half the seats, but the results in Seoul were very different from those in the 18th general election. While 40 members of the National Assembly were elected from Seoul in the 18th general election, the number shrank to 16 in the 19th general election. Mapo Gap (No Woong-rae), Mapo Eul (Jung Cheong-rae), and Dobong Gap (In Jae-keun) were reclaimed by Democratic United Party candidates. This means the destructive power of the New Town wind did not last long.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.