[The Opening Act of the June 1 Local Elections③] Chungcheong Voter Sentiment: 'Democratic Incumbent Premium vs. Yoon Wave' Key Points to Watch

All Four Metropolitan Mayors Are from the Democratic Party
In the Last Presidential Election, the People Power Party Won Everywhere Except Sejong
PPP Candidates Emphasize Their Connection to Yoon
Incumbent Democrats Running Again in Daejeon, Chungnam, and Sejong
No Young-min and Kwak Sang-eon Mentioned in Chungbuk

Following the narrow victory of the People Power Party in the presidential election, the local government head elections (jiseon) race has immediately begun. This year marks the 8th jiseon, with candidates from both ruling and opposition parties announcing their bids. Both sides are desperate to win this election. The People Power Party, victorious in the presidential election, is determined to secure the momentum for the newly launched Yoon Seok-yeol administration despite the limitation of a minority in the National Assembly. The Democratic Party also sees a jiseon victory as essential to regain public support after the shock of the presidential election defeat. Especially since the Democratic Party won 14 out of 17 metropolitan government seats in the last jiseon, there is a strong sense of crisis that they must not fall behind. Asia Economy examines the metropolitan government head race and candidate lineups in a six-part series.

[Asia Economy Reporters Koo Chae-eun, Park Joon-yi, Kwon Hyun-ji] The local elections in the Chungcheong region are expected to be a tight contest between the Democratic Party’s ‘defense’ and the People Power Party’s ‘recapture’. Currently, all four metropolitan government heads?governors of Chungnam and Chungbuk, and mayors of Daejeon and Sejong?are held by the Democratic Party. Except for Chungbuk Governor Lee Si-jong, who is subject to a three-term limit, Chungnam Governor Yang Seung-jo, Daejeon Mayor Heo Tae-jeong, and Sejong Mayor Lee Chun-hee are all incumbents expressing their intention to run for re-election. Therefore, the election structure is a fierce competition between incumbent candidates and challengers aiming to surpass the incumbents’ strongholds. Particularly, in the March 9 presidential election, President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol, who claimed to be the ‘son of Chungcheong,’ gained an advantage in all areas except Sejong, leading to a relative proliferation of People Power Party preliminary candidates.

The Chungcheong region’s voter sentiment shifted toward the People Power Party in this presidential election. In the 2018 local elections, the Democratic Party swept all positions: Chungbuk Governor (Lee Si-jong, 61.15%), Chungnam Governor (Yang Seung-jo, 62.55%), Daejeon Mayor (Heo Tae-jeong, 56.41%), and Sejong Mayor (Lee Chun-hee, 71.3%). However, in this presidential election, the People Power Party’s dominance was prominent, with President-elect Yoon leading in all areas except Sejong.

As a result, many candidates from the People Power Party are entering the race, riding the wave of regime change. Many emphasize their connections with President-elect Yoon in their campaigns. In Chungbuk, former Vice Minister of Public Administration and Security Park Kyung-guk, former lawmaker Oh Je-se, and former lawmaker Lee Hye-hoon have expressed their intentions to run. In Chungnam, incumbent lawmakers including four-term Lee Myung-soo, Hong Moon-pyo, and two-term Sung Il-jong are in the mix. In Daejeon, candidates from President-elect Yoon’s campaign committee stand out. Former lawmaker Jung Yong-gi, who served as deputy head of the campaign’s organizational headquarters, and former lawmaker Lee Jang-woo, who was head of the Daejeon campaign committee, have registered as preliminary candidates and officially declared their bids for mayor. Former Daejeon Mayor Park Sung-hyo is also closely trailing Mayor Heo Tae-jeong in various polls.

In Sejong, various candidates have thrown their hats in the ring to catch up with Mayor Lee Chun-hee. These include Song Ah-young, former chairperson of the People Power Party Sejong City branch and campaign committee head during President-elect Yoon’s candidacy, Choi Min-ho, current chairperson of the Sejong City branch, and Sung Seon-je, chairman of the Sejong Future Forum. A People Power Party parliamentary official commented, "There is high interest in how many Chungcheong-origin figures will be appointed to the new government cabinet, including the Prime Minister, and accordingly, a favorable election structure is expected in the jiseon."

On the Democratic Party side, in Chungnam, Governor Yang Seung-jo has officially declared his bid for re-election, while former Nonsan Mayor Hwang Myung-seon has also thrown his hat in the ring. In Daejeon, Mayor Heo Tae-jeong and former Seo-gu District Chief Jang Jong-tae are expected to compete in the primary. In Sejong, former Sejong City Economic Vice Mayor Jo Sang-ho is mentioned as a challenger to three-term Mayor Lee Chun-hee. For Chungbuk Governor, former Blue House Chief of Staff Noh Young-min, known as President Moon Jae-in’s ‘right-hand man,’ and lawyer Kwak Sang-eon, son-in-law of former President Roh Moo-hyun, are considered leading candidates.

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