Local Election Time Begins... Competition Among Jeonnam Superintendent Candidates Intensifies

Jang Seok-woong, Kim Dae-jung, and Kim Dong-hwan Compete in 'Differentiated Strategy' Battle

From the left, Jang Seok-woong, current Superintendent of Education, Kim Dae-jung, CEO of Jeonnam Education Autonomy Platform, Kim Dong-hwan, Principal of Deungnyangnam Elementary School

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Jun-kyung] As the presidential election fever ends and the time for the nationwide local elections approaches, the competition among candidates for the Jeonnam Superintendent of Education is intensifying.

Since the superintendent election does not allow party involvement or nominations, candidates face the limitation that a significant portion of voters either know little about or are indifferent to the superintendent candidates.

To compensate for this lack of recognition, each candidate is aiming to capture voters' support with differentiated pledges in this election.

According to the Jeonnam education community on the 19th, the candidates expected to run for Jeonnam Superintendent of Education in the nationwide simultaneous local elections on June 1 are the incumbent Superintendent Jang Seok-ung, Kim Dae-jung, CEO of Jeonnam Education Autonomy Platform, and Principal Kim Dong-hwan.

Jang Seok-ung, the current Jeonnam Superintendent of Education who has effectively formalized his bid for re-election through a book launch event, plans to maximize the advantage of his incumbent status.

He is expected to suspend his duties as superintendent and officially register as a candidate around the end of next month or early May, about a month before the local elections.

Making the most of his incumbent advantage, he is focusing on raising awareness through expanding school budget support and parent workshops. While maintaining his current position, he continues his activities by constantly engaging with outsiders during holidays and other times.

A close aide to Superintendent Jang said, “Since Superintendent Jang has not yet registered as a candidate, there are limitations to election campaigning,” adding, “It is difficult to disclose specific election-related details as it may violate election laws, and the formation of the campaign team will likely be possible only after Superintendent Jang completes his candidate registration.”

Kim Dae-jung, a candidate who had announced that he would fully suspend his election campaign until the presidential election ended on the 3rd, has also begun full-scale election activities after the presidential election.

Kim Dae-jung, known to be from the same Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (Jeon-gyo-jo) background as Superintendent Jang, claims, “The true Jeon-gyo-jo is a place that provides genuine education solely for students, not for vested interests,” showing a differentiated approach and signaling a serious contest with the current superintendent.

He opposes the small school consolidation policy currently promoted by the Jeonnam Office of Education and has pledged to raise Jeonnam’s education ranking from the bottom tier to the middle tier.

Having diverse experience in education and politics, Kim Dae-jung is recognized as a ‘soft exterior, strong interior’ figure with excellent policy judgment and outstanding political acumen. Especially, sharing the same name as former President Kim Dae-jung, a symbolic figure in Jeonnam, evokes nostalgia among local residents and creates a name recognition effect.

Advocating transparent elections, he has launched the ‘Kim Dae-jung Fund,’ which allows teachers and public officials to join, continuing his unique approach.

He is known to be the brother-in-law and brother-in-law-in-law of former Minister Cheon Jeong-bae and is gaining prominence with strong support from political and educational figures.

Kim Dong-hwan strongly criticizes Jeon-gyo-jo, declaring his candidacy for superintendent with the slogan ‘End Jeon-gyo-jo’s rule and bring young and new Jeonnam education.’

He supported Oh In-seong’s campaign for education superintendent in the previous election and is now focusing on winning the votes of elementary education stakeholders.

To run for superintendent, he took early retirement in February, more than 10 years before his mandatory retirement age. He is the youngest candidate ever to challenge the Jeonnam superintendent position.

He claims, “The past 12 years of Jeon-gyo-jo’s rule have been a continuous failure of educational innovation,” positioning himself as a young and new figure.

He also advocates placing ‘Basic Academic Guidance Cooperative Teachers’ in all elementary schools across Jeonnam, direct election of principals through public recruitment, and abolishing the rotation transfer system for staff, strongly criticizing the current superintendent’s policies and adopting a differentiation strategy.