Na Kyung-won and Oh Se-hoon Receive Early Nomination Certificates... Will They Lead the Hangang Belt?

Nakyungwon Confirmed for Dongjak... O Sehun Secured for Gwangjin-eul
Shinsangjin for Seongnam Jungwon & Heoyongbeom for Dongdaemun Gap
Key Players in Establishing the Hangang Belt

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyemin] Na Kyung-won, former floor leader of the Liberty Korea Party, and Oh Se-hoon, former mayor of Seoul, have secured their nominations just over two months ahead of the April 15 general election. It is analyzed that, based on their high recognition, they will lead the Seoul election as the vanguard of the strategy to recapture the metropolitan area.

On the 13th, Kim Hyung-o, chairman of the Liberty Korea Party’s nomination committee, announced the list of first confirmed nominees at the National Assembly. Among the single-candidate applicants, the nominations of four individuals were virtually confirmed: ▲Na Kyung-won (Dongjak-eul), former floor leader ▲Oh Se-hoon (Gwangjin-eul), former mayor ▲Shin Sang-jin (Seongnam Jungwon) lawmaker ▲Heo Yong-beom (Dongdaemun-gap), former director of the National Assembly Library. Although additional applications were accepted from the 14th until the morning of the 18th, the nominations for these districts were decided early.

All these constituencies are located in the metropolitan area and share the characteristic of being difficult districts. Former floor leader Na and lawmaker Shin previously served two and four terms respectively in their districts, but the Liberty Korea Party’s influence was weak, making elections challenging. The Gwangjin-gap district, where former mayor Oh is running for the first time, was represented by Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae for five consecutive terms. Former director Heo also ran in the 19th and 20th general elections in the district but was consecutively defeated.

The nomination committee’s early endorsement of these candidates is seen as an effort to secure the metropolitan electoral landscape. A Liberty Korea Party official said, "They aimed to lead the election atmosphere by putting forward prominent candidates first in the metropolitan area, which can determine the overall election outcome. Looking at the confirmed districts, they are divided by region: Oh in the east, Na in the south excluding Gangnam, and Shin in southern Gyeonggi. It appears they pre-selected people who can energize the election mood and take responsibility for those regions."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

There is also analysis that the swift confirmation of key candidates is linked to conservative unification. By blocking the emergence of new candidates after unification, the party created an environment where it can focus more on the election than internal affairs. A Liberty Korea Party official said, "When holding primaries, noise and aftereffects are inevitable. It fits the Hangang Belt strategy of gathering symbolic figures in the metropolitan area, and if the candidates have no disagreements among the nomination committee members, there is a mood to confirm nominations early."

In particular, former floor leader Na and former mayor Oh are likely to take on roles beyond winning their own districts. A Liberty Korea Party official said, "Although Representative Hwang Kyo-ahn is a Seoul candidate, he symbolizes responsibility nationwide, and the leading figures running in Seoul will be former mayor Oh and former floor leader Na. Their influence will also support elections in other districts."