Geoje Mayor By-election, Democratic Party Candidate Byeon Gwang-yong Confirmed Elected

Byeon Gwangyong secures 58% as of 12:00 a.m. on the 3rd
Conservative stronghold expected to favor People Power Party candidate
Public sentiment shifts to Democratic Party due to by-election responsibility

In the by-election for the mayor of Geoje, Gyeongnam, held on the 2nd, the election of Byeon Gwang-yong, the candidate from the Democratic Party of Korea, was confirmed.

According to the National Election Commission on the 3rd, as of 12:02 a.m., Byeon secured 49,767 votes (58.43%), far ahead of Park Hwan-gi of the People Power Party, who received 30,937 votes (36.32%). Independent candidate Kim Du-ho received 3,928 votes (4.61%), and independent candidate Hwang Young-seok received 529 votes (0.62%). The counting rate was 94.23%.

Byeon, who served as the mayor of Geoje during the 7th local government term, returns as mayor of Geoje after three years since his retirement in 2022.

Geoje has been classified as a conservative stronghold. Since the first local elections in 1995, the only time a progressive-leaning candidate was elected mayor of Geoje was in the 7th local elections in 2018, when Byeon was elected.

Because of this, there were expectations that the conservative candidate would lead, but public sentiment favored the Democratic Party rather than the People Power Party, which was responsible for the by-election. This by-election was held after former Geoje mayor Park Jong-woo of the People Power Party was disqualified due to a violation of the Public Official Election Act.

Byeon pledged ▲ 200,000 KRW (Geoje Love Gift Certificates) per citizen as a livelihood recovery support fund ▲ establishment of a 200 billion KRW regional coexistence development fund with the two major shipbuilding companies ▲ strengthening domestic worker employment by adjusting the quota for foreign workers in the shipbuilding industry.

Immediately after his election, he said, "The path for Geoje's development and citizens' happiness must focus solely on Geoje and its citizens, regardless of party affiliation," adding, "We will join forces to overcome the current crisis and open a new Geoje that attracts people again."

Meanwhile, in the by-elections for the Gyeongnam Provincial Assembly, Jeong Hee-seong of the People Power Party was elected in Changwon City’s 12th electoral district with 67.3%, and Lee Ki-jun of the Democratic Party was elected in the by-election for Yangsan City Council’s Ma electoral district with 46.5%.

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