Gwangju Seo-gu Council Members Largely 'Manifesto'... Local Election Nomination System Was Right

Published 22 Dec.2023 11:29(KST)

4 out of 5 Awardees Draw Attention in Seogu-gap District

Three First-Term Lawmakers' Nomination by Song Gap-seok Deemed 'Effective'

At the ‘15th Local Council Members’ Promise Awards’ hosted by the Korea Manifesto Practice Headquarters, the Seo-gu Council of Gwangju Metropolitan City attracted attention by producing five awardees. Notably, four of the five winners are council members from the Seo-gu Gap district, and among them, three first-term council members were named awardees, leading to evaluations that the nomination system of the 8th nationwide simultaneous local elections was successful.

Gwangju Seo-gu Council Members Largely 'Manifesto'... Local Election Nomination System Was Right

According to the Seo-gu Council of Gwangju on the 22nd, council members Jeon Seung-il, Oh Mi-seop, Lim Seong-hwa, and Kim Hyeong-mi, based in the Seo-gu Gap district, were selected as recipients of the ‘15th Local Council Members’ Manifesto Promise Awards’.

Among them, except for Jeon Seung-il, the other three are first-term council members who entered the council for the first time during the 2022 8th nationwide simultaneous local elections and achieved good results within a year and a half.

Oh Mi-seop, Lim Seong-hwa, and Kim Hyeong-mi entered the council through a process in which Song Gap-seok, the Democratic Party regional chairman of Gwangju Seo-gu Gap, actively discovered suitable candidates for public office during last year’s local elections.

They also actively conducted research activities aimed at strengthening legislative capabilities as part of the research group ‘Value (WITH)’, composed of first-term council members of the Seo-gu Council.

Based on these efforts, the Seo-gu Council of Gwangju, which had never before received such awards in the region, won a large number of awards for the first time in history, demonstrating the effectiveness of Song Gap-seok’s nomination system and further elevating the reputation of Gwangju in the era of local autonomy by making the Seo-gu Council a role model for local councils in South Korea.

Song Gap-seok’s nomination system resembles that of President Kim Dae-jung during his tenure as party chairman, who disregarded factions or regions. He actively discovered hidden talents with practical experience and expertise in various field sites.

By selecting young talents, the aim was to create new growth engines in the local political arena alongside concerns about the future of Gwangju in the era of local extinction.

A local political source said, “The first-term council members of Seo-gu, discovered through Song Gap-seok’s nomination system, achieved such a remarkable feat within a year and a half of legislative activity,” adding, “This proves the effectiveness of Song Gap-seok’s innovative nomination.”