6·1 Local Elections: Kim Dong-yeon’s Dramatic Comeback in Metropolitan Mayoral Races... People Power Party Wins 12 Areas, Democratic Party 5 (Comprehensive)

Democratic Party Wins Increase from 4 to 5 as Early Dawn Gyeonggi Election Results Flip
Both Chungcheong and Gangwon, Key Battlegrounds, Go to People Power Party

On the 1st, officials are conducting vote counting at the 8th Nationwide Local Elections counting center set up at Eunpyeong Multipurpose Gymnasium in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] In the June 1st nationwide simultaneous local elections, among the 17 metropolitan autonomous governors, the People Power Party won 12 places, and the Democratic Party of Korea won 5 places. This is the exact opposite result compared to the local elections four years ago, where the Democratic Party won 14 places and the Liberty Korea Party, the predecessor of the People Power Party, won only 2 places.

According to the Central Election Commission as of 7 a.m. on the 2nd, in this local election, the People Power Party won 2 out of 3 places in the Seoul metropolitan area, which was the biggest battleground, with Oh Se-hoon winning the Seoul mayoral election and Yoo Jeong-bok winning the Incheon mayoral election.

The Democratic Party’s Kim Dong-yeon showed a strong finish in the Gyeonggi Province governor election, successfully overtaking around 5:30 a.m., narrowly defending the Gyeonggi governorship. Upon confirmation of his election, Kim Dong-yeon said, "Reform and change are necessary for the Democratic Party," adding, "I believe the residents and the public have given me this honor with the seed and expectation for change in the Democratic Party."

In the Chungcheong region, another battleground, the People Power Party achieved a clean sweep. Kim Young-hwan won the Chungbuk governorship, Kim Tae-heum won the Chungnam governorship, Lee Jang-woo won in Daejeon, and Choi Min-ho won in Sejong. In Gangwon Province, Kim Jin-tae also secured victory.

The People Power Party also succeeded in sweeping the Yeongnam region, with Park Hyung-joon winning in Busan, Hong Joon-pyo in Daegu, Kim Doo-gyeom in Ulsan, Lee Cheol-woo in Gyeongbuk, and Park Wan-su in Gyeongnam.

The Democratic Party won in Honam and Jeju. Kang Ki-jung won in Gwangju, Kim Young-rok in Jeonnam, Kim Kwan-young in Jeonbuk, and Oh Young-hoon in Jeju.

This election result is clearly different compared to the 7th local elections four years ago. At that time, the Democratic Party swept all metropolitan governors except for Daegu, Gyeongbuk, and Jeju.

Although the local elections ended in a landslide victory for the People Power Party, Kim Dong-yeon’s win in Gyeonggi Province broke the initial exit poll prediction that the Democratic Party would only win in Honam and Jeju. By defending Gyeonggi Province, the Democratic Party was able to avoid the humiliation of a complete defeat.

Meanwhile, in the by-elections for the National Assembly held alongside the local elections, the People Power Party won 5 places and the Democratic Party won 2 places. Originally, the by-elections were for 4 places for the People Power Party and 3 places for the Democratic Party due to incumbent lawmakers running in local elections, but with Park Jeong-ha of the People Power Party winning in Wonju Gap, Gangwon Province, the People Power Party’s seats increased by one.

In Incheon Gyeyang-eul, Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung won; in Seongnam Bundang-gap, People Power Party candidate Ahn Cheol-soo won; in Daegu Suseong, People Power Party candidate Lee In-seon won; in Changwon Uichang, Gyeongnam, People Power Party candidate Kim Young-seon won; in Wonju Gap, Gangwon, People Power Party candidate Park Jeong-ha won; in Boryeong Seocheon, Chungnam, People Power Party candidate Jang Dong-hyuk won; and in Jeju Jeju-eul, Democratic Party candidate Kim Han-gyu won, respectively.

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