Conservative Candidates Proliferate for Seoul Superintendent of Education... 'n-Stage Unification' Inevitable

Former Minister Lee Ju-ho Joins, Advocates for Second Unification
Unified Candidates Jo Jun-hyuk and Jo Young-dal Oppose

Lee Ju-ho, Chairman of the Asia Education Association, is being interviewed on the 20th at the Asia Education Association in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

As the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent election approaches on June 1, conservative candidates are proliferating. The unification process is being carried out through multiple organizations, making 'n-th unification' inevitable.

The Metropolitan Area Education Superintendent Candidate Unification Promotion Council (Gyochuhyeop) selected former lawmaker Jo Jeon-hyeok as their candidate on the 30th of last month, while the Seoul Education Redesign Headquarters chose Professor Jo Young-dal of Seoul National University's Department of Social Education as their unified candidate on the 11th. Former Dongguk University professor and ex-lawmaker Park Sun-young raised allegations of irregularities during Gyochuhyeop's unification voting process and announced her withdrawal from the candidacy. Amid the visibility of the first unification, former Minister of Education, Science and Technology Lee Ju-ho declared his candidacy and called for a second unification.

A representative from Lee's camp said on the 13th, "Since the candidate registration deadline is May 12, unification discussions must be concluded by the end of this month," adding, "We have agreed on unification with former professor Park Sun-young, and she has agreed to unify through a 100% public opinion poll." The representative also said, "If the electorate is recruited, there is a possibility of distortion, and Candidate Lee agrees with this view," and "Because the unification organizations are divided into several groups, consolidating them into one is more difficult. If the candidates agree on the unification method (100% public opinion poll), unification can be achieved solely through the poll." Candidate Park stated, "If the re-unification is fair and transparent, there is no reason to refuse," accepting the unification proposal from Lee's camp.

Both candidates Jo Jeon-hyeok and Jo Young-dal have expressed opposition. They argue that Lee, who participated in the unification process as an election advisor for Gyochuhyeop, running as a candidate is politically unethical. The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Conservative Right-Wing Candidate Unification Citizens' Council demanded, "We call for a re-unification attempt involving all leading moderate conservative candidates," and stated, "Since the education superintendent election is conducted by Seoul citizens, re-unification should be pursued transparently through a fair public opinion poll method targeting 100% Seoul citizens."

In the 2018 local elections, conservative candidates also ran multiple candidates, making unification a variable in this election as well. In that election, Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon ran as the sole progressive candidate and was elected with 31.8% of the vote.