Gwangju City Sports Council Elects Third Leader in 3 Years Since Transition to Elected Leadership Despite 3-Year Term

1st Term President Steps Down Midterm Due to Health Issues; 2nd Term Faces Disqualification for Lawyer Act Violation

Candidate Registration Statements Received on November 15... Final Election on December 15

Kim Yongju, Park Chanmo, Lee Chan

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Yoon Jamin] The Gwangju Metropolitan City Sports Council, which entered its first elected chairman system in January 2020, will elect its third leader in less than three years.

According to the Gwangju City Sports Council on the 25th, the third elected chairman of the Gwangju City Sports Council will be chosen by an electoral college on December 15.

Prior to this, the City Sports Council plans to receive statements of intent for chairman candidacy registration through the relevant sports councils on November 15.

The City Sports Council elected Chairman Kim Chang-jun as the first elected chairman in 2020, but he resigned after only one year in office due to health reasons, failing to complete his three-year term.

In the subsequent by-election, Chairman Lee Sang-dong was elected, but he stepped down after the Supreme Court confirmed a sentence of 1 year and 2 months imprisonment with 2 years probation and a fine of 53 million won related to lawsuits involving violations of the Attorney Act and embezzlement before his election.

Thus, the Gwangju City Sports Council will elect its third chairman within just three years of transitioning to the elected system, despite the chairman’s three-year guaranteed term.

In this election, candidates such as Kim Yong-ju, President of the Jokgu Association; Park Chan-mo, President of the Athletics Federation; Lee Chang-hyun, President of the Swimming Federation; Jeon Gap-su, President of the Volleyball Association; Choi Gap-ryeol, President of the Gwangsan-gu Sports Council; and Hong Seong-gil, President of the Badminton Association (in alphabetical order) are being mentioned both officially and unofficially.

Chairman Choi Gap-ryeol recently expressed his intention to run for the Gwangju City Sports Council chairman election at the 103rd National Sports Festival held in Ulsan.

It is also known that many of these candidates are gathering to unify their candidacies.

Chairmen Park Chan-mo, Hong Seong-gil, and Lee Chang-hyun stated, "We have agreed to unify our candidacies to firmly establish Gwangju’s status as an international sports city and to grow it into a sports mecca."

Additionally, Chairmen Kim Yong-ju and Jeon Gap-su are also reported to share this intention. The schedule and method for unification and endorsement are expected to be decided at a meeting to be held again in early next month.

If unification is successful, the third elected chairman election of the Gwangju City Sports Council is expected to be a two-way contest between the 'unified candidate vs. Choi Gap-ryeol.'

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