Democratic Party to Begin Incumbent Evaluations in December Ahead of Next Year’s Local Elections... 'Tension Mounts'

Jeonnam Provincial Council Building Exterior

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The Democratic Party of Korea will begin evaluating elected officials, including heads of local governments and local council members, starting in December ahead of next year’s local elections. In the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions, known as the party’s strongholds, the results of these evaluations could lead to point deductions in the nomination process, heightening the sense of tension among incumbents.

According to the Gwangju City and Jeonnam Provincial branches of the Democratic Party on the 13th, the party’s central committee recently established the “Implementation Rules for the Evaluation of Metropolitan and Basic Government Heads and Council Members.” Once the detailed procedures are finalized, the evaluation is expected to begin as early as mid to late next month.

Those who fall into the bottom 20% in the evaluation will have 20% of their votes deducted during the nomination screening or primary process, making it virtually impossible to secure a nomination. In previous elections, many candidates who received low rankings chose not to run again.

With the “No Cut-off” principle emphasized under the leadership of Jeong Cheongrae, this evaluation is expected to serve as the first major hurdle for incumbents seeking re-election or higher office.

The Democratic Party will evaluate metropolitan government heads at the national level through the central committee, while basic government heads will be evaluated at the metropolitan level. Metropolitan council members will be assessed either by council or by standing committee, and basic council members will be evaluated by their respective councils.

There are five Democratic Party-affiliated metropolitan government heads nationwide, and one of them will fall into the bottom 20% category.

Among basic government heads, one out of five in Gwangju and at least three out of seventeen in Jeonnam-excluding the Wando County Governor, who is restricted by a three-term limit-are expected to be subject to low evaluations.

It is estimated that four out of twenty-one Democratic Party-affiliated members of the Gwangju City Council and eleven out of fifty-six in the Jeonnam Provincial Council could fall into the bottom 20%. The possibility of incumbents with low rankings choosing not to run could become a variable in the upcoming nomination process.

The evaluation criteria include job performance assessed through public opinion polls and the degree of contribution to improving the quality of local life. For metropolitan and basic council members, peer evaluations will also be reflected in addition to legislative performance, making relationships among council members an important factor.

Notably, the Democratic Party has expanded the scope of its morality evaluation from immediate family members to include relatives and close associates. As a result, there are expected to be more cases where incumbents receive low evaluations due to issues involving not only themselves, but also their families or associates.

A local political figure stated, “Being included in the bottom 20% is essentially equivalent to receiving a ‘certificate of election forfeiture’ in regions where nomination guarantees victory. There is even talk that one of the five Democratic Party-affiliated metropolitan government heads nationwide could come from Gwangju or Jeonnam. Naturally, this has led to much speculation and analysis. We will have to wait and see what the results are.”

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