[6.3 Election] Min Hyungbae Confirmed as Candidate... Spotlight on Gwangsan-eul By-election and Strategic Nomination

With Min Hyungbae, a member of the National Assembly representing Gwangsan-eul in Gwangju, confirmed as the Democratic Party of Korea's candidate for the inaugural integrated special mayoral election for Jeonnam and Gwangju, the prospect of a by-election for the Gwangsan-eul seat in the National Assembly has become increasingly likely. If Min resigns from his parliamentary seat by April 30 to officially register as a candidate in the local elections, the by-election will be held simultaneously with the local elections on June 3. Since the Democratic Party has already announced a principle of strategic nominations for all constituencies in the upcoming parliamentary by-elections, local political circles are now focused on the potential candidates who may be strategically nominated for Gwangsan-eul.

Supporters are congratulating candidate Min Hyungbae on his confirmation by presenting bouquets on the 14th, the day the Democratic Party of Korea's integrated special mayoral candidate for Jeonnam and Gwangju was announced. Photo by Min Hyunki

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According to the current Public Official Election Act as of April 14, any National Assembly member wishing to run for the head of a local government must resign from their seat at least 30 days before the election. For the June 3 local elections, resignation must take place by April 30 for a by-election to be held concurrently. Barring any unexpected developments, Min is expected to resign and then register as the Democratic Party's candidate for the integrated special mayoral election.

Particularly, since Jeong Cheongrae, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, has clarified the party's principle of strategic nominations for all parliamentary by-elections, it is highly likely that the candidate for Gwangsan-eul will also be selected through this process. At a recent on-site Supreme Council meeting, Jeong stated, "There is not enough time and, due to various circumstances, it is difficult to hold a primary for the parliamentary by-elections. We will adhere to the principle of strategic nomination for all constituencies."

With the strategic nomination policy now clear, attention in local political circles is naturally turning to the pool of potential candidates.

Jeong Cheong-rae, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the on-site Supreme Council meeting held at the Jeonnam Damyang Nonghyup headquarters on the 10th. Photo by Song Bohyun

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Currently, local figures being discussed include Park Sugi, a Gwangju City Council member who recently participated in the Gwangsan-gu mayoral primary, and Cha Seungse, the Democratic Party leader's Special Political Advisor.

Park Sugi is a local politician who has served the Suwan, Hanam, and Imgok districts of Gwangsan-gu, continuing his legislative work in those areas. At the Gwangju City Council, he has consistently raised policy questions and made proposals regarding educational policy and industrial infrastructure issues.

Cha Seungse has served as the Special Political Advisor to the Gwangju City government and chief secretary of Gwangsan-gu. During the 21st presidential election, he was organizational team leader for Lee Jaemyung’s central campaign committee and head of strategy and planning for the Gwangju campaign committee. He later worked as Deputy Spokesperson for the Democratic Party's central office and currently serves as Special Political Advisor to leader Jeong Cheongrae.

Other names being mentioned as potential strategic nominees in local political circles include Kang Wion, former Vice Governor for Economic Affairs of Jeonnam Province; Kim Sungjin, former Spokesperson for the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy; and Choi Chihyeon, former Blue House administrator.

Kang has been recognized for his role as a policy coordinator connecting the central government and Jeonnam Province. Kim, a career civil servant who passed the public administration exam, has previously served as Director of the Jeonnam Regional Communications Office and head of the Economic Free Zone Planning Team at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Choi, who has experience as a parliamentary aide and Blue House administrator, is known for his strong connections to central politics.

Yoon Nansil, former Secretary for Institutional Reform at the Presidential Office and currently the spokesperson for Min’s campaign, is also being discussed as a potential candidate, based on her prior experience as head of the Gwangsan-gu Public Interest Activity Support Center. However, whether she will be strategically nominated is seen as dependent on the decision of the Democratic Party's central office.

Meanwhile, Jeong Jaehyuk, former Senior Administrator at the Blue House, who participated in the Gwangsan-eul Democratic Party primary during the 2024 general elections, is also being mentioned. Jeong previously served as a parliamentary aide and Senior Administrator at the Blue House, working for more than 50 months in the Blue House under the Moon Jae-in administration before joining Lee Jaemyung’s presidential campaign in 2021.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Party’s announcement of the list of newly recruited candidates for the parliamentary by-election strategic nominations, originally scheduled for April 14, has reportedly been postponed to April 17. The specific regions and candidate pool for strategic nominations are also expected to become clearer following this announcement.

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