[6.1 Local Elections] Will the 'Progressive Stronghold' Gangbuk District Mayor Change This Time?

Democratic Party's Lee Soon-hee and People Power Party's Lee Sung-hee, Female-Male Candidates from Jincheon, Chungbuk, Draw Attention as Experienced District Mayor Contenders in Gender Battle

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Seoul Gangbuk-gu is a representative area with strong support for the Democratic Party, where many people from Honam reside, similar to Geumcheon-gu and Gwanak-gu.

Democratic Party of Korea Candidate Lee Soon-hee for Gangbuk District Mayor

Lee Seong-hee, Candidate for Gangbuk District Mayor from the People Power Party

Accordingly, it is a Democratic Party stronghold where the party has consecutively won not only district mayoral elections but also general and presidential elections.

In the district mayoral elections, Park Gyeom-su, the Democratic Party candidate, was elected in the 2010 fifth local election and has since been re-elected three times consecutively. In the National Assembly elections, Cheon Jun-ho (Gap) and Park Yong-jin (Eul) were elected in the 21st general election.

In addition, in the 20th presidential election, candidate Lee Jae-myung received 103,335 votes, and candidate Yoon Seok-youl received 86,540 votes, with Lee leading by about 9 percentage points, marking the largest margin among Seoul’s 25 autonomous districts.

For the Gangbuk-gu mayoral candidates with such regional characteristics, the Democratic Party nominated Lee Soon-hee, and the People Power Party nominated Lee Seong-hee.

Candidate Lee Soon-hee (62) is a local activist who has operated a daycare center in the area and has been involved in local political activities; she also serves as the vice chairperson of the Democratic Party’s National Women’s Committee.

The Democratic Party selected Gangbuk-gu as a female strategic electoral district, and Lee, who has been active in the Gap district, became the Gangbuk-gu mayoral candidate through a primary against the best candidate from the Eul district.

Candidate Lee Seong-hee (66) of the People Power Party served as vice chairman of the Gangbuk-gu council and chairperson of the Seoul Metropolitan Council’s Culture, Sports, and Tourism Committee. He ran for Gangbuk-gu mayor in the seventh local election but lost and is now making a comeback after four years.

Notably, both candidates are from Jincheon, Chungbuk, and are known to maintain a good relationship beyond party lines while being active in the region. On the afternoon of the 14th, candidate Lee of the People Power Party posted a photo on his Facebook showing him arm-in-arm with candidate Lee while drinking beer at a Gangbuk-gu Sports Council executive meeting, attracting attention.

Candidate Lee said, “As juniors from the same hometown who have long been active in Gangbuk-gu,” they exchanged kind words about cooperating for the development of Gangbuk-gu regardless of who wins. Especially, candidate Lee mentioned that Gangbuk-gu ranks 24th out of 25 Seoul districts in financial independence, has no companies to attract, and emphasized the need to work hard to improve residents’ welfare. He promised to lead by example to unite residents for the development of Gangbuk-gu beyond party lines. Both candidates also share a connection through earning their master’s and doctoral degrees at Kwangwoon University.

Democratic Party candidate Lee Soon-hee pledged five key promises: ▲realizing a happy life for everyone from children to youth and seniors in Gangbuk-gu ▲developing Gangbuk-gu as a northeastern hub city ▲establishing a genuine cultural, tourism, and arts city ▲aiming for top-tier education that plans for the future ▲implementing advanced welfare administration.

People Power Party candidate Lee Seong-hee proposed promises including ▲24-hour opening of Gangbuk-gu health centers ▲monthly opening of the Gangbuk-gu mayor’s office to the public ▲establishing a private joint support organization under the mayor to promote reconstruction and redevelopment ▲building a space science center and media facilities for youth.

However, the mayoral election in this Democratic Party stronghold is not expected to be easy. There are opinions that it is difficult to predict the election outcome due to conflicts between the Gap and Eul districts during the Democratic Party candidate selection process.

A prominent Gangbuk-gu politician said, “This election is difficult to predict.” This is interpreted as being due to the first election held just 20 days after the inauguration of the Yoon Seok-youl government, along with the high approval rating of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and the rising influence of the People Power Party.

This is also why the People Power Party is cautiously anticipating the possibility of winning the district mayoral seat and is making efforts to appeal to public sentiment.