Hong adds Daegu mayor to his unconventional career trajectory

Even by the standards of South Korea’s convoluted politics, Hong Joon-pyo has had a rather unusual career trajectory. He was a five-time lawmaker, twice elected governor of South Gyeongsang Province and head of the main conservative party for two separate stints. He was the party’s presidential candidate five years ago and recently was a runner-up in its presidential primary, losing to Yoon Suk-yeol who went on to take the top state office. In Wednesday’s election, Hong

June 2, 2022

[News Analysis] Major changes to unfold in political arena following local elections

A raft of major changes is in store for South Korea’s political circle in the wake of local elections, with new faces likely to emerge as leaders of major parties moving forward. For the main opposition Democratic Party, a sweeping reform has been in the works since the March presidential election defeat, but experts say something similar could also be demanded of the ruling People Power Party. Following a crushing defeat for the Democratic Party in the local elections, where it won only

June 2, 2022

Democratic Party leaders resign over crushing local elections defeat

Leaders of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea resigned en masse Thursday following a crushing defeat in the local elections. Rep. Yun Ho-jung, chair of the party’s emergency steering committee, announced following a party meeting that the committee will resign immediately “to assume responsibility” for the disappointing outcome. “All members of the Democratic Party’s emergency committee have decided to resign from our posts to assume responsibility of t

June 2, 2022

Landslide victory adds clout to Yoon administration

President Yoon Suk-yeol and the ruling People Power Party’s political clout is growing, following a landslide victory in the June 1 local elections despite the opposition dominating the National Assembly. Yoon vowed to dedicate all his energy to stabilizing people’s livelihoods. The local elections are crucial for Yoon, as they determine the political direction of the first two years of his administration before the 2024 general election takes place. In the elections held 22 day

June 2, 2022

Disconnected from mainland, Jeju delivers DP one of its few wins

Among the few consolation prizes for Democratic Party of Korea’s bitter loss in Wednesday’s local elections was the resounding victory won by its candidate Oh Young-hun in the race for the Jeju governor’s office. Born and raised in the southern resort island, the 53-year-old politician was the first Democratic Party candidate to be elected Jeju governor in 20 years. Woo Keun-min in 2002 was elected on the ticket of the Democratic Party’s forerunner, the Millennium Democr

June 2, 2022

Ruling party achieves landslide win in local elections

South Korea’s ruling People Power Party achieved a landslide victory in the local elections held Wednesday, as its candidates prevailed in most of the major cities and provinces to add support to the recently inaugurated Yoon Suk-yeol administration. According to the National Election Commission’s data, the ruling party won 12 out of 17 metropolitan mayoral and provincial gubernatorial elections, winning a majority for the first time since 2006 when its predecessor, the Grand Nation

June 2, 2022

Yoon says he takes election results as people's call to revive economy

President Yoon Suk-yeol said Thursday he takes the results of the local elections as a call from the people to revive the economy and improve their livelihoods. Yoon issued the statement through his spokesperson as the results of Wednesday's local elections and parliamentary by-elections were being finalized, with the ruling People Power Party securing 12 of the 17 key mayoral and gubernatorial races. "I thank the people as the local elections ended smoothly through mature civic awaren

June 2, 2022

Ruling party favored to win local elections by landslide

South Korea’s ruling People Power Party appeared set for a landslide win in the local elections, with counted ballots favoring its candidates in most of the major cities and provinces by late Wednesday night. By 11 p.m., the party was seen to be strongly leading in the mayoral elections of Seoul, Incheon, Daegu, Ulsan and Busan, and its candidates were also in clear leads for the gubernatorial elections of Gangwon, North Chungcheong, South Chungcheong, North Gyeongsang and South Gyeongsan

June 1, 2022

S. Korea‘s conservative party notches big win over democratic party in local elections

The ruling People Power Party was expected to score a major victory over the main opposition Democratic Party in the local elections Wednesday, taking mayorships in the country’s two largest cities, Seoul and Busan, according to an exit poll released by the country’s three major broadcasters, KBS, MBC and SBS. In Seoul, the People Power Party’s Mayor Oh Se-hoon showed a two-digit gap over the opposition’s Song Young-gil in the exit poll. According to exit polls released

June 1, 2022

South Jeolla Province records highest voter turnout

South Jeolla Province recorded the highest turnout in Wednesday’s local elections, data showed. According to the National Election Commission’s data, voter turnout in the region came to 58.5 percent, the highest among the 17 metropolitan cities and provinces, as of 8 p.m. The lowest turnout was recorded in Gwangju, at 37.7 percent.　 Overall voter turnout marked just 50.6 percent, the lowest recorded since the 2002 local election.

June 1, 2022

Two ex-presidential candidates victorious in National Assembly bid

Recent presidential candidates Lee Jae-myung and Ahn Cheol-soo, respectively of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and the ruling People Power Party, appeared likely to land National Assembly seats in Wednesday’s by-election, according to exit polls.  Lee saves face Lee Jae-myung, who was narrowly beaten in the 2022 presidential race just three months ago, trumped his People Power Party opponent Yun Hyung-sun 54 percent to 45 percent in their exit poll. This presumpti

June 1, 2022

Parliamentary by-election’s result of joint exit poll released

KBS, MBC and SBS have announced the results of their joint exit polls regarding the two key parliamentary by-elections. According to the exit polls, Democratic Party of Korea candidate Lee Jae-myung has the upper hand in Gyeyang-gu, Incheon, and the People Power Party’s candidate Ahn Cheol-soo has the upper hand in the Bundang-gu constituency of Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. In Gyeyang-gu, Lee polled at 54.1 percent, with his opponent Yoon Hyung-sun of the People Power Party trailing a

June 1, 2022

Exit poll results hint at landslide victory for ruling party

The ruling People Power Party appeared set for a landslide win in the local elections Wednesday, with exit poll results favoring its candidates in many key regions. According to exit poll results from terrestrial broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS released at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, the ruling People Power Party was favored to win 10 out of 17 metropolitan mayoral and provincial gubernatorial elections, as opposed to four for the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea. The exit polls predicted Oh S

June 1, 2022

Ruling party winning in 10 districts, democratic in 4: exit poll

The ruling People Power Party appeared set for wins across the country in races for major metropolitan and provincial government leadership, with exit polls giving the party the lead in 10 of 17 territories. According to exit polls conducted by the country’s three major broadcast companies -- SBS, KBS and MBC -- 10 districts including Seoul favored candidates from the People Power Party, while candidates from the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea had the upper hand in four. The

June 1, 2022

Oh Se-hoon leads the Seoul mayoral local election

Oh Se-hoon of the ruling People Power Party is headed for a landslide win in the Seoul mayoral election, with exit polls putting him at 58.7 percent of the votes. The exit polls, compiled jointly by terrestrial broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS, showed Song Young-gil of the Democratic Party of Korea with 40.2 percent of the votes. 　 For the governorship of Gyeonggi Province, exit polls forecast a close race between the ruling and the main opposition parties, with only 0.6 percentage point separati

June 1, 2022

Ruling party wins 10 of 17 key local election races: exit poll

The ruling People Power Party was projected to win 10 of the 17 metropolitan mayoral and gubernatorial posts, including Seoul mayor, in Wednesday's local elections, according to a joint exit poll by three major TV broadcasters. The main opposition Democratic Party was expected to grab four posts, including the governorships in the Jeolla provinces, according to the poll conducted by KBS, MBC and SBS. Three races, including the contest for Gyeonggi govenor, were too close to call. In a sepa

June 1, 2022

Voters go to polls in pivotal local elections

Voters across the country on Wednesday headed to polling stations for local elections and parliamentary by-elections, with prior opinion polls indicating a likely win for the ruling People Power Party. Main voting started at 14,465 polling stations across the country at 6 a.m. Wednesday for 44.3 million eligible voters to pick new local government officials to serve for the next four years. COVID-19 patients and those under quarantine were given from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. to cast their votes.

June 1, 2022

[From the Scene] Voters cast ballots to support new administration, or hold it in check

Voters on Wednesday went to polling stations for the local elections as rival parties hoped for a favorable outcome with each claiming that support for their candidates would impact the future of the country. While the ruling People Power Party hoped to pull out wins over the Democratic Party of Korea to give the new administration a needed boost, the main opposition party aimed to make up for its loss in the March 9 presidential election. The divergence was also apparent among voters who v

June 1, 2022

A look back at the history of local elections

The 2022 local elections in Korea were held Wednesday, marking the eighth edition of the event since the right to elect local government leaders and assembly members. The history of local elections in Korea began in 1952 in the midst of the Korean War, with two more such elections held in 1956 and 1960. However, local elections were put on hold for nearly three decades after an authoritarian regime took power in the 1960s. Former President Park Chung-hee put a stop to the local elections a

June 1, 2022

Ex-President Moon sues protestors for defamation, death threats

Former President Moon Jae-in has sued four people, including members of conservative groups, for protesting in front of his residence on charges of defamation and death threats. Moon’s legal representative visited the Yangsan Police Station on Tuesday and filed a complaint on behalf of Moon and his spouse Kim Jung-sook against the four people from three protest groups. The accusations include abusive language, repeated dissemination of false information, defamation, threats murder a

June 1, 2022