[Political X-File] "What Is Losing an Election?"... The Election Master Known as the 'Legend of Chungju'

(34) The Myth of 8 Wins in 8 Elections, Politician Lee Si-jong
Crossing Between Hannara Party and Democratic Party with Unbroken Election Victories
From Mayor to Governor to National Assembly Member, 'Candidacy = Victory'

Editor's Note‘Political X-Files’ is a series that delivers ‘unprecedented stories’ recorded in the election results and incidents of Korean politics.

For politicians, winning an election brings a thrill as exhilarating as winning the lottery. Whether it’s the president or a county council member, the day their victory is confirmed is a time when they envy no one.

Where there are winners in elections, there are inevitably losers. Among the top politicians who have controlled central politics, some have never tasted the joy of victory even once.

Many politicians experience the bitter taste of defeat as much as the joy of victory. Not just those who run once or twice and give up, but career politicians who have experienced elections for 10, 20 years or more inevitably fall into the swamp of defeat and feel despair in life.

It is the natural order of the political ecosystem that those who have endured hardships as politicians overcome them and rise to the pinnacle of power. However, some have defied the usual rules of politics and eventually left a dazzling legacy, becoming legends and myths as they exited the political stage.

Former Chungbuk Governor Lee Si-jong. / Cheongju = Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

The figure who shouts, “What is losing an election?” The person for whom running in an election naturally means winning. Who is this protagonist who has always sailed smoothly without deviating from his course despite the fierce storms of politics? It is politician Lee Si-jong, known as the ‘Legend of Chungju,’ who can be rightfully called a master of elections.

Lee Si-jong is not the only politician who created the formula ‘Running for public office = Winning,’ but his record is more special compared to others. He has written a winning legend by crossing various election fields, including parliamentary elections, mayoral elections, and metropolitan governor (provincial governor) elections.

Politician Lee Si-jong ran in eight public office elections over 23 years, from the 1995 Chungju mayoral election to the 2018 Chungcheongbuk-do gubernatorial election, winning all of them. In 2004 and 2008, he ran in general elections and became a member of the National Assembly representing Chungju.

Whether it was the Chungju mayoral election, the Chungju National Assembly election, or the Chungcheongbuk-do gubernatorial election, whenever politician Lee Si-jong ran, he won, and all his competitors lost. Interestingly, Lee Si-jong was not a seasoned politician hardened in the Yeouido political scene.

He was not someone who had solidly built up political experience but rather someone who spent his youth in the public service sector.

On June 1, 2022, the day of the 8th nationwide local elections, voters are casting their precious votes at Yeonhui-dong 6th polling station set up at Seodaemun-gu Office in Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

Politician Lee Si-jong passed the 10th Administrative High Examination and worked as a public official at the Chungcheongbuk-do Provincial Office, Gangwon Provincial Office, Chungnam Provincial Office, and the Ministry of the Interior. Before the introduction of direct local elections in 1995, he served as the county head of Yeongwol and mayor of Chungju.

Lee Si-jong’s debut on the election stage was the 1995 Chungju mayoral election. At that time, he ran as a candidate of the Democratic Liberal Party and was elected with 42.1% of the vote. In the 1998 Chungju mayoral election, he ran as an independent candidate and was elected with 62.2% of the vote. In the 2002 local elections, he ran as a candidate of the Grand National Party and was elected with 56.7% of the vote.

Politician Lee Si-jong became mayor of Chungju by running with the nominations of the Grand National Party and the Democratic Liberal Party, predecessors of the People Power Party. In terms of political color, he leans toward conservatism. However, in the 2004 17th general election, he ran not as a Grand National Party candidate but as a candidate of the Uri Party and became a National Assembly member representing Chungju. In the 2008 18th general election, he also ran as a candidate of the United Democratic Party and was elected as a National Assembly member for Chungju.

The 2004 general election was swept by the Uri Party wave, but the 2008 general election was a tough one for the United Democratic Party. Nevertheless, politician Lee Si-jong won with a high vote share of 48.0% even in that election. This means he overcame the lack of popularity of his party through his personal political skills.

Lee Si-jong, the Democratic Party of Korea candidate for Governor of Chungbuk, is delivering a greeting at the 'Chungcheong Region Metropolitan Government Candidates Greeting' event held at the National Assembly on April 20, 2018. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

In the 2010, 2014, and 2018 local elections, he ran as a candidate of the current Democratic Party-affiliated parties and was elected governor of Chungcheongbuk-do.

What is the reason behind politician Lee Si-jong’s undefeated winning streak? Chungju is classified as a relatively conservative-leaning region, but it is not to the extent that a nomination from a particular party guarantees victory. This is why he was elected running as a candidate from the current Democratic Party-affiliated parties from 2004 to 2018.

However, Lee Si-jong’s relatively conservative political stance worked as an advantage for election victories. It provided a voting rationale not only for voters who support the Democratic Party but also for those who support the People Power Party.

If a political party’s color is too strong, it may be praised by the party’s hardcore supporters but can be rejected by supporters of the opposing party. On the other hand, politician Lee Si-jong’s political style, which appeals to moderate conservative voters, acted as a plus factor in elections.

In the Chungcheongbuk-do gubernatorial elections, being a politician from Chungju, the second most populous city after Cheongju, was an advantageous factor. Chungju generally tends to give many votes to People Power Party-affiliated parties, but when politician Lee Si-jong ran as a candidate, this political rule did not apply.

In the 2014 Chungcheongbuk-do gubernatorial election, the Saenuri Party fielded Yoon Jin-sik, a former National Assembly member from Chungju, as a strong contender. However, Yoon Jin-sik received only 47.7% of the vote and could not surpass Lee Si-jong, who garnered 49.8%.

Born in 1947, former Chungcheongbuk-do Governor Lee Si-jong has stepped away from the active political stage. Retirement may be a word of regret, but for politician Lee Si-jong, retirement will be remembered as the completion of an undefeated legend.