[General Election Candidates] ④ Former Military Generals 'Marching Toward the Gold Badge'

Many Candidates from Military Generals Running Regardless of Party
Numerous Military Veterans Declare Candidacy in Nonsan, Gyeryong, and Geumsan, Chungnam

Editor's NoteWith the arrival of the new year 2024, the political landscape for the 22nd general election has officially opened. Public sentiment remains shrouded in uncertainty. Unexpected variables have emerged, such as the attack on Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea. The ruling and opposition parties are rapidly moving into the nomination phase. Voters are observing the nomination process to judge whether reforms will be made. They assess the 'direction' and 'figures' that the parties aim for. Political parties do not only innovate; sometimes they regress. Since this election is about choosing the nation's representatives for the next four years, it is crucial to scrutinize them carefully. This series examines candidates by major fields and generations: ① Presidential Office ② Bureaucrats ③ Legal and Police sectors ④ Military

On April 10, the 22nd National Assembly election will see a large number of military-related figures, including retired generals, entering the race.

The first to declare candidacy was Im Jong-deuk, former Deputy Director of the National Security Office at the Presidential Office. He resigned just before Chuseok last September and announced his intention to run in the Gyeongbuk Yeongju·Yeongyang·Bonghwa·Uljin district. Im is originally from Yeongju, the most populous area in that constituency. He graduated from the Korea Military Academy (KMA) class of 42, served as Chief of Staff at the Joint Chiefs of Staff Secretariat, and commanded the 17th Army Division. In 2016, he worked as the Defense Secretary at the Blue House under the Park Geun-hye administration. He has registered as a People Power Party (PPP) preliminary candidate and has been actively campaigning, holding book launch events on the 4th and 8th of this month.

Go Seok, chairman of the People Power Party's Yongin-byeong district committee and a KMA class of 39 graduate, who is also a junior alumnus of Seoul National University Law School and a judicial training institute classmate of President Yoon Suk-yeol, has thrown his hat into the ring for the Gyeonggi Yongin-byeong district. After graduating from KMA, he passed the 33rd bar exam and served as a KMA professor and Chief Judge of the Ministry of National Defense High Military Court. It is known that when he was promoted to general in 2008, the first among his cohort, President Yoon, then the head of the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office Nonsan branch, called to congratulate him.

Many from KMA and Presidential Office Positions Enter the Race

Kim Do-gyun, former commander of the Capital Defense Command (KMA class 44), also declared early his candidacy under the Democratic Party banner for his hometown district of Gangwon Sokcho·Inje·Goseong·Yangyang. Kim, who was the South Korean chief representative during the 2018 'September 19 Military Agreement,' targeted Defense Minister Shin Won-sik, who is currently pushing to suspend the agreement's effectiveness, during his November press conference last year. Last month, he urged Minister Shin, who described the Moon Jae-in administration's Korean Peninsula peace process as a 'complete fake,' not to incite fear of war ahead of the election. Kim is a former 35th Capital Defense Command commander and junior to Minister Shin, who was the 30th commander.

Kim Hee-chul, former Crisis Management Secretary at the Presidential Office (KMA class 37), also declared his candidacy for the People Power Party in Gyeonggi Yongin-si Gap (Cheoin-gu). Kim previously served as Vice Chairman of the Military Mutual Aid Association, Director of Policy at the Army Headquarters, and Crisis Management Secretary at the Presidential Office during the Lee Myung-bak administration. He currently chairs the People Power Party's Gyeonggi Province Unification and Security Committee.

There are also active members of the National Assembly who are retired generals making another bid. Baek Gun-gi, a retired four-star general and former mayor of Yongin (KMA class 29), who served as a 19th National Assembly member and lost in the 2022 local elections, is running under the Democratic Party banner in Gyeonggi Yongin-gap district. Han Ki-ho, a People Power Party member (class 31), is running again in Gangwon Chuncheon·Cheorwon·Hwacheon·Yanggu-eul district, and Kim Byung-joo, a Democratic Party proportional representation member (class 40), has chosen to run in Gyeonggi Namyangju-eul.

Retired Generals Challenge in Gyeryong and Nonsan, Home to the Three Military Headquarters

Many retired officers are aiming to run in Chungnam Nonsan·Gyeryong·Geumsan. These include Park Chan-joo, former 2nd Operations Command commander (KMA class 37), Park Sung-gyu, former 1st Army commander (3rd Military Academy class 10), and Kim Jang-soo, former Blue House administrative officer. Nonsan hosts the Army Training Center, the Korea National Defense University, and the Army Aviation School, while Gyeryong is known as the 'City of Defense' housing the headquarters of the Army, Navy, and Air Force (the three military branches) at Gyeryongdae, making these areas favorable for retired generals. All three have registered as preliminary candidates for the People Power Party.

Park, who sparked national outrage in 2017 over a scandal involving abuse of military aides, recently criticized the Moon Jae-in administration's purge of deep-rooted evils as a "counter-historical act aimed at annihilating the mainstream of the Republic of Korea" in his autobiography, and expressed his intention to repay with "good politics" by running in the general election. Kim Jang-soo is focusing on expanding his base by leveraging his connections with former President Lee Myung-bak and President Yoon Suk-yeol. Park Sung-gyu is strengthening his position within the party through his friendship with Baek Seong-hyun, mayor of Nonsan, and his appointment as a member of the Democratic Peaceful Unification Advisory Council's occupational operations committee, while raising his profile by attending various defense-related forums and seminars.

Defense Industry Expert Park Jin-ho Registers in Sangju·Mungyeong District

Seo Wook, the last Minister of National Defense under the Moon Jae-in administration (class 41), was expected to run under the Democratic Party banner in his hometown, Gwangju Metropolitan City Buk-gu, but there has been no movement toward candidacy yet. Lee Jong-seop, the first Minister of National Defense under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration (class 40), was also mentioned as a potential People Power Party candidate for the Gyeongbuk Yeongcheon Cheongdo district, which includes his hometown Yeongcheon, but he reportedly declined.

Although not a retired general, some candidates with military ties have also entered the race. Bu Seung-chan, former Ministry of National Defense spokesperson who raised suspicions about the presidential residence relocation under 'Cheonggong,' has registered as a Democratic Party preliminary candidate in Gyeonggi Yongin-byeong. Park Jin-ho, a member of the People Power Party Central Committee's Foreign Affairs and Trade Subcommittee, has registered as a preliminary candidate in the Gyeongbuk Sangju·Mungyeong district and has begun active campaigning. Park is recognized as an expert in defense acquisition. Lee Hyung-seop, a People Power Party district committee chairman and former military legal officer at the Ministry of National Defense, is challenging the Uijeongbu-eul district. Recently, he published a book titled 'Truth Pursuit,' which deals with the Gosan-dong logistics center scandal, and held a book launch event.