[Interview] 'Moon's Man' Jeong Tae-ho: "Let's Change Gwanak Entirely... Please Give Us Your Support"

Early Start of Nangok Line Light Rail and Other Promises
"A Person Who Can Realize Regional Development"
Regarding Election Trends, "I Have a Good Feeling"

On the afternoon of the 31st, Jeong Tae-ho, the Democratic Party candidate running for Gwanak-eul in the April 15 general election, is greeting residents in front of the market in Samseong-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] “My slogan is ‘Let’s change Gwanak as a whole.’ There is a strong demand for regional development. (Residents) often say that the pace of development is slower compared to other areas.”

On the afternoon of the 31st, Jeong Tae-ho, the Democratic Party candidate running for Seoul Gwanak-eul in the April 15 general election, told Asia Economy, “Who can realize the demand for regional development? Ultimately, it is someone who can move the central government and Seoul city,” adding, “Since it is a financially underprivileged area, I think there is a high expectation for me.” He also said, “(Residents) gave a chance to Oh Shin-hwan, the Future United Party candidate, for five years, but they don’t seem to have felt any special change.”

Jeong presented three major pledges for the general election: ▲ Establishment of a startup and venture valley ▲ Early commencement of the Nanggok Line light rail ▲ Renaissance of the Sillim commercial district. Jeong emphasized, “Changing Gwanak-eul as a whole means revitalizing the local economy,” and added, “We will start early construction of the light rail, a long-standing wish of the Nanggok area, and make the commercial districts around Sillim Station, such as Sundae Town and Shinwon Market, which have greatly declined, into famous spots in Seoul.”

On the afternoon of the 31st, Jeong Tae-ho, the Democratic Party candidate running for Gwanak-eul in the April 15 general election, is meeting and talking with residents in front of the market in Samseong-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul.

Regarding the election outlook, Jeong said, “First of all, the grassroots sentiment feels good,” and stated, “Previously, our support base was divided between the Democratic Party and the People’s Party, which caused us to lose this area, but now it has consolidated under the Democratic Party. I have hope that we can win (the election).” Gwanak-eul has been a traditional progressive stronghold where Democratic Party-affiliated parties won six times and the Unified Progressive Party once since 1988. However, in the 2015 by-election and the 2016 general election, conservative party candidate Oh defeated Jeong twice. The vote difference in the 20th general election was only 861 votes (0.7%).

Jeong said, “It is important to overcome the national disaster of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) immediately, and to overcome the upcoming economic crisis, we need to support President Moon Jae-in. I hope everyone will unite to help the Democratic Party achieve a landslide victory,” adding, “I am said to be a close aide to President Moon, and I want to enter the National Assembly to help overcome the national crisis.”