Talent drain takes luster off of Seoul mayoral race

Gyeonggi governor, Daegu mayor now most sought-after elected posts

Seoul’s mayor in the past had been the most sought-after elected post for politicians who were ambitious enough to attempt a run for the top job in the government, as the position often served as a springboard to the presidential race.

Historically, several Seoul mayors were nominated or ran in presidential elections after winning their party’s nominations. Former President Lee Myung-bak won the 2007 presidential election with 48.67 percent, a double-digit margin over other candidates, after pushing through the Cheonggye Stream restoration project as Seoul’s mayor.

With the upcoming June 1 local elections coming up, it seems that a seismic shift could be underway in politicians’ perception toward certain elective posts. The Seoul mayoral election seems to be dipping in popularity, whereas the popularity of the Gyeonggi gubernatorial election is on the rise, particularly among the ruling Democratic Party of Korea’s (DPK) members.

Inside the DPK, a talent drain of potential candidates for the Seoul mayoral election has become an urgent issue.

As of Thursday, second-term lawmaker Park Ju-min is the only DPK politician who has declared his bid to run in the party’s primary to select its candidate. Few political heavyweights have expressed their intention to join the party’s nomination race for Seoul’s mayor.

Wary of the possible consequences of a lackluster showing in the race, some DPK lawmakers — such as Rep. Kim Nam-guk — who are close to Lee Jae-myung, who narrowly lost the March 9 presidential election on the DPK’s ticket, are trying to persuade former DPK Chairman Song Young-gil to run in the Seoul mayoral election.

Kim met Song, who has been in self-imposed exile in local temples since the DPK candidate’s defeat in the presidential election, encouraging him to consider a bid for the mayoral election. Song’s reaction to the proposal is unknown. But Kim quoted him as saying that the former DPK chairman would follow whatever the party asks him to do, if it officially requests him to run in the election.

It remains uncertain whether Song will be able to run in the local election because of the dynamics within the ruling party. Inside the DPK, people are divided in their opinions of the party’s former chairman. There are opponents who claimed that Song is responsible for the party’s defeat in the presidential election. Thus, he shouldn’t represent the party in the local election.

The popularity of current Seoul mayor Oh Se-hoon, elected less than a year ago in the April 9 by-election, seems to be one of the reasons for DPK heavyweights having been discouraged from running in the election.

Amid the lack of focus within the DPK on the Seoul mayoral election, another important election in the greater Seoul area has heated up. Several DPK lawmakers have been declaring their bids to run in the party’s primary to select its candidate to run in the Gyeonggi gubernatorial election.

Kim Dong-yeon, a former finance minister, is the latest candidate to express his intention to run in the Gyeonggi gubernatorial election.

During a press conference to declare his bid for the election at the National Assembly on Thursday, Kim showed his resolve to win.

“For those who are crossing their fingers for a change of administration in the next presidential election, the Gyeonggi gubernatorial election is one that we shouldn’t lose,” he said.

Stressing that he has spent nearly half of his life living in Gwangju and three other cities in the province, working as a public official and university president. Kim is the founder and leader of the minor New Wave Korea Party. Earlier this week, he and the DPK agreed to take steps to merge the two parties. So if he wins the nomination, he will represent the DPK.

Earlier, fifth-term lawmaker Rep. Cho Jeong-sik of the province’s Siheung City declared his bid to run in the election, and another fifthterm lawmaker, Rep. An Min-suk, of Gyeonggi’s Osan City, is expected to officially join the race. Inside the DPK, the primary will take a threeway race among Kim, Cho and An.

In the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), the nomination for the Daegu mayoral election has become the most south-after nomination. Rep. Hong Joon-pyo, who ran unsuccessfully in the 2017 presidential election on the conservative party’s ticket, declared his bid to run in the party’s race to select its candidate to run in the Daegu mayoral election.

During a press conference to declare his candidacy, Hong stressed his ties with the conservative southern city. Calling Daegu his political hometown, he said his heart has been in the southern city since he joined the National Assembly as a lawmaker. “Daegu is my political comrade,” he said, noting that he was seriously thinking of running in the 2006 and 2014 local elections to become mayor of the city, but had to scrap his plans. “So, this is my third time to consider becoming mayor of the city,” he said. His rival is Rep. Kim Jae-won, a judge-turned-lawmaker who previously served as a member of the PPP’s decision-making Supreme Council.

The PPP’s internal race to select its candidate for the Daegu mayoral election is set to take a drastic turn as another, unusual candidate is known to be preparing for his bid.

Yoo Young-ha, a former lawmaker, will reportedly declare his bid to run in the election on Friday. As an attorney, Yoo represented ex-President Park Geun-hye in all during her legal battles before she was jailed. After being imprisoned for nearly five years on corruption charges, Park was pardoned on Dec. 24. Upon her release from a Seoul hospital last week after a three-month hospitalization, she headed down to Daegu, where her new home is based. She received a warm welcome from local supporters. Considering Park’s political clout among Daegu voters, it is possible that her endorsement of her own lawyer, Yoo, for the city’s next mayor could become a game-changing event in Daegu’s race.