80 Days Until Local Elections... Who Will Lead Politics in Gyeongnam?

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Jucheol In] As the 20th presidential election has ended and the blueprint for the next ‘Yoon Seok-yeol government’ is being drawn, attention is focused on how the candidate lineups for the 8th simultaneous nationwide local elections to be held on June 1 will be formed.

In particular, in Gyeongnam, interest is high in who will become the next governor as the acting governor system has continued for eight months since former Governor Kim Kyung-soo lost his position due to the ‘Druking comment manipulation’ charges.

The local elections, in which the People Power Party, having won all 18 cities and counties in the province, will participate as the ruling party, are expected to create a favorable situation for the People Power Party.

Meanwhile, for the Democratic Party, the red light has turned on for retaining the Gyeongnam governorship as former Governor Kim Kyung-soo, who was the first Democratic candidate to be elected in traditionally conservative Gyeongnam, fell from office and the party also lost the presidential election.

The pool of gubernatorial candidates is still experiencing a shortage of figures. Three-term Representative Min Hong-chul and two-term Representative Kim Jung-ho, both from Gimhae, are being mentioned. However, it is expected that it will not be easy for Representatives Min Hong-chul and Kim Jung-ho to give up their constituencies midway.

Some have also suggested the option of fielding Park Sung-ho, former Director of the Local Autonomy Division at the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, who is from Gimhae, served as Deputy Governor of Gyeongnam Province, and has expressed intentions to run for mayor of Gimhae, as a gubernatorial candidate.

Among those outside the National Assembly, Han Kyung-ho, former acting governor of Gyeongnam and chairman of the Jinju-eul district committee, and former Changwon Mayor Gong Min-bae are being considered as candidates regardless of their own intentions.

However, there is public opinion that these candidates lack competitiveness, and voices are emerging that Representative Kim Doo-kwan, who previously served as governor and participated in the recent presidential primary, should be brought in.

On the other hand, the People Power Party’s candidate pool, having won the presidential election, is overflowing with well-known figures, and a fierce contest is expected during the nomination process.

First, Representative Yoon Han-hong, known as a ‘Yoon core insider’ (Yoon Seok-yeol core associate), is being mentioned. During the party’s presidential primary, Representative Yoon served as deputy head of the situation team, and after the presidential candidate was confirmed, he took the position of deputy head of the party’s strategic planning department. After the campaign headquarters was reorganized, he declared a voluntary retreat and managed Yoon’s TV debate preparations behind the scenes.

Representative Yoon is also being considered for the next Minister of the Interior and Safety, but he himself has a strong intention to run for governor of Gyeongnam in June. It is said that Representative Yoon will coordinate with President-elect Yoon.

Other strong contenders include two-term Representative Park Wan-soo, who served as party secretary-general; three-term Representative Yoon Young-seok, who challenged the Gyeongnam party leadership; three-term Representative Cho Hae-jin, currently chair of the National Assembly Education Committee and an early member of the Yoon Seok-yeol campaign; and Representative Seo Il-jun (Geoje), who was appointed administrative chief overseeing the transition team’s affairs on the 11th.

Three-term Representative Kim Tae-ho, who previously served as governor of Gyeongnam and was co-chairman of Yoon Seok-yeol’s campaign, has recently been strongly rumored to be making a gubernatorial comeback.

Among those outside the National Assembly, former five-term Representative Lee Joo-young, who served as deputy speaker of the National Assembly, and former four-term Representative Kim Jae-kyung, who served four consecutive terms in Jinju, are expected to finish their presidential campaign activities and re-enter the gubernatorial race.

Excluding the Democratic Party and People Power Party, Justice Party leader Yeo Young-guk, who served as a member of the National Assembly from Changwon, is also being mentioned.

Among these candidates, attention is focused on whether the showdown between former governors Kim Doo-kwan and Kim Tae-ho from opposing parties will materialize.

Although the Democratic Party’s momentum has declined due to the presidential election defeat, the prevailing view is that a heavyweight candidate’s entry is necessary to defend the Gyeongnam governorship, which was narrowly won in the 2018 local elections.

Meanwhile, from the 14th, preliminary candidate registrations for governor, mayor, provincial assembly members, and city council members will begin, and from the 20th, registrations for county governors and county council members in 10 counties within the province will start.

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