Jeonnam Superintendent of Education Election Heats Up... Superintendent Jang Seok-ung to Announce Candidacy on the 18th

From the left, Jang Seok-woong, current Superintendent of Education, Kim Dae-jung, preliminary candidate, Kim Dong-hwan, preliminary candidate

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Jun-kyung] As the June 1 local elections approach, the competition among preliminary candidates for Jeonnam Superintendent of Education is heating up.

Currently, two candidates, Kim Dae-jung and Kim Dong-hwan, have officially declared their candidacy and started election campaigns, while Superintendent Jang Seok-ung, who recently publicly expressed his intention to seek re-election, is also entering the final countdown to his announcement.

According to the Jeonnam education community on the 12th, Superintendent Jang will officially declare his candidacy on the 18th, then hold an election office opening ceremony around the 30th at Seongbo Tower in Suncheon, beginning full-scale efforts to win voters' support. Once he registers as a preliminary candidate, Superintendent Jang’s duties will be suspended, and Deputy Superintendent Kim Cheon-hong will serve as acting superintendent.

Although there has been no official announcement yet, it is reported that Superintendent Jang has been conducting behind-the-scenes work by meeting with various figures to prepare for his re-election.

Meanwhile, the Jeonnam Democratic Progressive Education Practice Association (hereafter Jeonnam Education Association) is known to be pushing for the nomination of a single democratic progressive candidate for superintendent, raising tensions further.

A source from the Jeonnam education community said, “The Jeonnam Education Association plans to complete organizational restructuring and accept candidate applications by the 20th. Although there was some internal disagreement over the single candidate nomination, cautious reports suggest that they have already decided to endorse Superintendent Jang as the sole candidate.”

In response, preliminary candidates Kim Dae-jung and Kim Dong-hwan have each challenged Superintendent Jang with differentiated education policies.

Candidate Kim Dae-jung criticized, “Superintendent Jang should stop involving public authority in the election process,” pointing out that recently, education office officials have received warnings from the Jeonnam Election Commission for election law violations such as promoting the superintendent’s achievements.

He opposes the Jeonnam Office of Education’s policy of consolidating small schools and has pledged to raise Jeonnam’s education ranking from the lowest tier to the middle tier, signaling a serious contest with Superintendent Jang.

The main focus of this election is the competition between Superintendent Jang and candidate Kim Dae-jung. Among the two, both known to be former members of the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (KTU), attention is on how much support Superintendent Jang, with the advantage of incumbency, and candidate Kim, recognized for his policy judgment and excellent political acumen, will each garner.

Given the nature of superintendent elections, many voters are either unaware of the candidates’ backgrounds or indifferent, so the influence of the “incumbency premium” is considerable.

Nevertheless, predicting the outcome is difficult. Candidate Kim Dae-jung is known to have broad support within the education sector and a relatively solid organizational base in the province. In particular, with the full support of former Minister Cheon Jeong-bae, who is related to him by marriage, he is considered to have sufficient competitiveness.

Preliminary candidate Kim Dong-hwan declared, “I will end the 12 years of KTU-led education innovation failures and create a young and new Jeonnam education,” positioning himself as anti-KTU.

A former public school principal, he emphasizes youth and freshness as his strengths, appealing for support by stating, “I will reorganize the ‘Public Service Inspection Team’ within the audit office into a separate ‘independent organization’ staffed with external experts, establish a permanent inspection team, strengthen public service discipline, and do my best to enhance the trust in the Jeonnam Office of Education.”

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