[The Opening Act of the June 1 Local Elections④] The People Power Party, Which Couldn't Even Field Candidates in Honam, Is It Different This Time?

Kim Yong-ho and Cheon Ha-ram Announce Candidacy
Lee Jun-seok to Hold Honam Region Briefing on 2nd Next Month
Democrats' Incumbent Local Leaders Seek Re-election
Former and Current Lawmakers Step Up Checks and Balances

Editor's NoteFollowing the narrow victory of the People Power Party in the presidential election, the race for local government heads (local elections) has immediately begun. This year marks the 8th local elections, with candidates from both ruling and opposition parties announcing their bids. Both sides are desperate to win this election. The People Power Party, having won 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 victory in the local elections as essential to regain public support after the shock of losing the presidential election. In particular, the Democratic Party is highly aware of the crisis, as it won 14 out of 17 metropolitan government seats in the last local elections and cannot afford to lose ground. Asia Economy examines the metropolitan government head races and candidate lineups in a six-part series.

[Asia Economy Reporters Oh Ju-yeon, Lee Hyun-joo, Kwon Hyun-ji] In the June 1 local elections, the key point to watch in the Honam region is how effectively the Democratic Party can defend its stronghold and how forceful the People Power Party's offensive will be. The Democratic Party aims for a sweeping victory in Honam to establish it as the largest base to check the next Yoon Seok-yeol government, while the People Power Party plans to continue its upward trend, noting that it secured over 10% of the vote in Honam during the recent presidential election.

The metropolitan government heads in Honam include the governors of Jeonnam and Jeonbuk provinces and the mayor of Gwangju. For Jeonnam governor, incumbent Kim Young-rok is highly likely to run as the sole Democratic Party candidate. So far, no Democratic Party member from the Jeonnam regional committee has resigned to run in the local elections.

The People Power Party has a rush of challengers. After President-elect Yoon secured 11.4% of the vote in Jeonnam, Kim Hwa-jin, the provincial party chairman; Chun Ha-ram, chairman of the Suncheon-Gwangyang-Gokseong-Gurye A district party committee; and Lee Joong-hyo, chairman of the Yeongam-Muan-Shinan district party committee, have consecutively declared their candidacies. Former Saenuri Party (the predecessor of People Power Party) leader Lee Jung-hyun has also expressed his intention to run for governor, expanding the race.

In a phone interview, former leader Lee said, "I have been assessing various political circumstances for some time," and added, "I have firmly decided to run."

For the Jeonbuk governor seat, incumbent Song Ha-jin is preparing to officially run, and a total of six candidates, including four current and former Democratic Party lawmakers, have declared their intentions. Among them are two-term lawmakers Kim Yoon-duk and Ahn Ho-young, former lawmakers Kim Kwan-young and Yoo Sung-yeop, and Kim Jae-sun, Jeonbuk representative of the Roh Moo-hyun Spirit Succession Alliance. From the People Power Party, Kim Yong-ho, chairman of the Namwon-Imsil-Sunchang district party committee, has entered the race. Originally from Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, Kim served as a director of the Jeonbuk Bar Association and has lived in Namwon since 2009. Although he lost as the Saenuri Party candidate in the 2016 general election for the Namwon-Sunchang district, he is determined to make a surprising comeback in this election.

For the Gwangju mayoral position, a contest is expected between incumbent Democratic Party mayor Lee Yong-seop, who is seeking re-election, and former Blue House political secretary Kang Ki-jung. Lawyer Jung Joon-ho, who served as the head of the Gwangju Metropolitan Party's Daechonhwan campaign headquarters for former presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung, and Kim Hae-kyung, a visiting professor at Nambu University, have also announced their candidacies. On the People Power Party side, former lawmakers Kim Kyung-jin and Song Ki-seok have been mentioned as potential candidates but have not made official statements.

Accordingly, the People Power Party plans to actively search for candidates in the Honam region, including for the Gwangju mayoral race. On July 2, Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, will hold a local election briefing session in Gwangju for the Honam region. At this event, Lee will explain the nomination directions for Gwangju and Jeonnam and Jeonbuk, as well as the newly introduced ‘Public Office Candidate Competency Enhancement Test’ for this election. On June 31, at the Supreme Council meeting, Lee said regarding the Honam local election briefing, "Since our party's support in Honam increased significantly in the last presidential election, we expect many people in Honam to take great interest and participate in this local election."

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