Changwon Mayor Heo Seong-mu's Solo Run... Focus on 'Person' Over Party

Candidate Suitability in Multi-Candidate Race: Heo Seong-mu - Hong Nam-pyo - Jang Dong-hwa Order

Over 4 out of 10 Supporters Back People Power Party, Democratic Party at 26.4%, Independents at 9.3%

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Se-ryeong] In the June 1 local election for Changwon mayor, the ‘personality factor’ is expected to exert significant influence. This is because Mayor Heo Seong-moo of Changwon showed the highest approval rating regardless of party support.

According to a poll conducted by Realmeter on behalf of International News from the 4th to the 5th among 1,006 men and women aged 18 or older residing in Changwon (70% mobile, 30% landline), Mayor Heo Seong-moo received 25.6% support, ranking first in suitability as the next Changwon mayor candidate from both ruling and opposition parties.

He is 17.9 percentage points ahead of the second-place candidate, Hong Nam-pyo, a preliminary candidate from the People Power Party, who received 7.7%.

Following Hong are Jang Dong-hwa (People Power Party preliminary candidate) with 7.1%, Lee Heung-seok (Democratic Party preliminary candidate) with 6.4%, Kim Sang-gyu (People Power Party preliminary candidate) with 5.8%, Heo Young (People Power Party preliminary candidate) with 5.7%, Kim Jae-kyung (People Power Party preliminary candidate) with 5.6%, Cha Joo-mok (People Power Party preliminary candidate) with 3.9%, Song Byung-kwon (People Power Party preliminary candidate) with 3.1%, Jo Cheong-rae (People Power Party preliminary candidate) with 3.1%, Noh Chang-seop (Changwon city council member) with 2.6%, and Park Ji-won (People Power Party preliminary candidate) with 2.2%, in that order.

Regarding party support, more than 4 out of 10 Changwon citizens (47.0%) responded that they support the People Power Party, while 26.4% support the Democratic Party. The People Party received 11.0%, the Justice Party 5.2%, and other parties 1.1%.

In particular, the support rate for the People Power Party among citizens of Masanhappo-gu was relatively dominant at 55.0%. By age group, 50s showed 51.5%, those aged 60 and above 62.7%; by gender, males showed 51.2%; and by occupation, self-employed at 60.1% and housewives at 55.4% showed somewhat stronger support for the People Power Party.

For the Democratic Party, support was relatively prominent in Seongsan-gu at 29.6%, among people in their 30s at 35.4%, 40s at 35.8%, females at 30.8%, and by occupation, production, technical, and labor workers at 40.6% as well as office, management, and professional workers at 36.4%.

By region, Masanhappo-gu showed 55.0%, by age group 50s at 51.5%, 60 and above at 62.7%, by gender males at 51.2%, and by occupation self-employed at 60.1% and housewives at 55.4% showed somewhat stronger support for the People Power Party.

For the Democratic Party, by region Seongsan-gu showed 29.6%, by age group 30s at 35.4%, 40s at 35.8%, by gender females at 30.8%, and by occupation production, technical, and labor workers at 40.6% and office, management, and professional workers at 36.4% showed relatively notable support.

Regarding the candidacy of incumbent National Assembly members in the local elections, Changwon citizens expressed more opposition within the margin of error.

Respecting the individual assembly member’s intention to run and acknowledging that their eligibility cannot be blocked, 32.3% responded in favor, while 37.7% opposed, citing that the ruling party seat distribution could change and that it could distort the public will expressed in the general election, showing a difference within the margin of error ±3.1% points.

Those who answered “don’t know” accounted for 30.0%.

Among those expressing support, the 30s age group was the highest at 39.7%, and males accounted for 37.5%.

Support was also high among Justice Party supporters at 37.7%, People Power Party supporters at 35.5%, and by occupation, office, management, and professional workers at 40.1% and self-employed at 36.7%.

Opposition responses were highest in Seongsan-gu at 41.5%, among people in their 50s at 43.4%, males at 41.6%, and by party support, the Justice Party at 45.1%.

This poll was conducted among 1,006 men and women aged 18 or older residing in Changwon, using random telephone calls with 70% mobile and 30% landline (including virtual numbers).

The sampling error is ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level, the response rate was 4.2%, and the survey was conducted using an automated response system (ARS) with a structured questionnaire. For detailed survey information, please refer to the Realmeter website or the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission website.