Two Years Before Local Elections... Secrets Behind Well-Rated Seoul District Mayors? [Park Jong-il Autonomous News]

With 2 Years Until Local Elections, Not Only Internal Staff but Also Residents Evaluate... Ryu Gyeong-gi, Jungnang District Mayor, Receives Positive Reviews from Nearby Nowon Residents... Choi Ho-kwon, Yeongdeungpo District Mayor, Jeon Seong-su, Seocho District Mayor, and Park Kang-su, Mapo District Mayor, Show Regional Development Achievements and Excel in Communication with Staff and Residents, Drawing Attention

The Seoul district mayor elections are just two years away. Since district mayors in Seoul are politicians elected by the residents, they are evaluated by both residents and employees. Being evaluated is an inevitable fate for elected district mayors.

There are 25 district mayors in Seoul. Because of this, the 25 district mayors receive various evaluations not only from their own residents but also from residents of neighboring districts.

Seoul is vast, but rumors do not take long to spread. Especially, evaluations received from internal employees quickly spread to other districts without much delay.

When there are no elections, district mayors hold powerful influence through employee work evaluations. However, during elections, since they must earn votes one by one from residents, the reputation among employees living in the area becomes decisive. Usually, there are about 1,500 to 2,000 employees in a district, and about 30% of them, over 500, live in the district. Considering votes from employees, their families, and relatives, this can create a difference of 1,000 to 2,000 votes. In close elections, this can determine the outcome.

If a district mayor has a poor reputation due to conflicts with internal customers such as employees, unfavorable election results are inevitable. This was evident in the election held two years ago. Employee evaluations have a decisive impact on elections.

Resident evaluations go without saying. District mayors interact with residents 365 days a year by hosting various events. Of course, most residents rarely get the chance to meet the district mayor. Those who do include community leaders such as tongbanjang (neighborhood heads), autonomous committee members, and volunteers. Numerically, this group is not large. Most residents tend to have little interest in who their district mayor is.

However, not only residents of the district but also those from adjacent districts sometimes give positive evaluations. Ryu Kyung-gi, mayor of Jungnang District, is a case in point. Graduating from Seoul National University’s Department of Political Science and passing the civil service exam, he served as the first deputy mayor of Seoul before being elected as the 7th term mayor of Jungnang District and winning re-election. He has resolved major local development issues such as attracting the SH headquarters and the Sejong Center annex. Moreover, every Wednesday, he tours various parts of the district and cleans alongside residents, earning praise as the ‘cleaning mayor’ who shows humility. Since his inauguration on July 1, 2018, he has cleaned weekly for over four years?a truly challenging commitment. Perhaps because of this consistent attitude, despite a difficult atmosphere for the 8th term mayoral election, he won re-election by a margin of over 10,000 votes. It seems this is why even residents of neighboring Nowon District gave him positive evaluations. A Nowon resident, Mr. A, recently said, “I live in Nowon District right next to Jungnang, and I heard that Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi is very popular because he does his job perfectly.” He added, “I often go to Costco in Sangbong-dong for groceries, and seeing many students coming and going at the Bang Jeong-hwan Education Support Center made me feel he pays a lot of attention to education, which I envy.” It is rare to hear such positive evaluations from neighboring residents.

In the Gangbuk area, Oh Seung-rok, mayor of Nowon District, and Oh Eon-seok, mayor of Dobong District, are also known to receive good evaluations from residents. Oh Seung-rok is recognized as a district mayor who satisfies residents’ cultural needs by hosting high-quality festivals year-round, including the ongoing ‘2024 Bulamsan Iron Festival.’

Oh Eon-seok, the only conservative district mayor in the Gangbuk area, shows proactiveness in addressing local issues such as lifting height restrictions on Bukhansan Mountain and making the GTX-C line above ground. Nicknamed ‘Oh Seobang,’ he communicates well with residents based on his unique affability.

Lee Pil-hyung, mayor of Dongdaemun District, is praised for local development projects such as market development around Cheongnyangni Station and creating a ‘City of Flowers.’

Kim Kyung-ho, mayor of Gwangjin District, is credited with revitalizing the area by expanding commercial zones and improving local development conditions. He also pays attention to improving working conditions for lower-level public officials, demonstrating dedication to internal customer management, which helped achieve a top national integrity rating for local governments in 2023.

Jung Won-oh, mayor of Seongdong District, is currently the only Seoul district mayor serving a third term and is known as a mayor deeply familiar with the area. He is credited with upgrading the local brand by turning Seongsu-dong into a representative ‘hot place’ in Seoul.

Kim Gil-sung, mayor of Jung District, has enhanced urban competitiveness by easing the Namsan height restriction that had been in place since 1995 and revitalizing housing redevelopment in the Sindang-dong area. He achieved remarkable results such as designating Myeongdong as a free outdoor advertising zone. Particularly, he installed state-of-the-art luxury ‘smart shelters’ in Myeongdong and Yaksu-dong, earning positive feedback from residents. Mayor Kim actively meets with residents of 15 neighborhoods to address local issues through communication.

Park Kang-soo, mayor of Mapo District, is regarded as the most passionate local leader on the ground. While making every effort to open the Sanggam Station subway, the creation of ‘Hongdae Red Road’ has become a branded product attracting tourists worldwide and has won various awards. He also fulfills the role of an idea man by organizing filial piety meals for the elderly.

Kim Mi-kyung, mayor of Eunpyeong District, has shown strong leadership by pushing forward the establishment of a ‘recycling processing facility’ jointly used with neighboring Seodaemun and Mapo districts during her tenure.

Choi Ho-kwon, mayor of Yeongdeungpo District, a Seoul National University graduate who passed the civil service exam and worked at Seoul City and the Blue House, is known as a district mayor who communicates well with both employees and residents with humility. He has achieved results such as attracting the Sejong Center to Yeouido, fostering a redevelopment atmosphere in Yeouido, and extensively developing old factory areas like Mullae-dong.

Lee Ki-jae, mayor of Yangcheon District, is creating the most passionate local development foundation ever by promoting large-scale redevelopment in the Mok-dong area.

Moon Heon-il, mayor of Guro District, is credited with bringing a wave of local development and spreading vitality since his inauguration. He also demonstrated strength by achieving the top national integrity rating for local governments in 2023.

Jeon Seong-su, mayor of Seocho District, graduated from Seoul National University Law School, passed the civil service exam, and has a distinguished career at Seoul City, the Blue House, and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. He is well known as a district mayor who communicates well with both employees and residents and is making Seocho a cultural special city.

Seo Kang-seok, mayor of Songpa District, a Seoul City University graduate who rose to grade 1 through the civil service exam, is a principled bureaucrat. Since his inauguration, he has smoothly resolved obstacles such as cultural heritage excavations that hinder redevelopment projects, providing astronomical property benefits to local residents. Based on his outstanding expertise in culture, he is upgrading content such as the Hansung Cultural Festival and Songpa Lake Cherry Blossom Festival.

However, some district mayors receive poor evaluations even from internal employees. Districts that technical public officials, who rotate through all of Seoul, avoid tend not to receive good evaluations from internal employees. There are reasons for this. Technical public officials share evaluations from seniors and colleagues and know which districts to avoid. If a district does not receive good evaluations from internal customers, word of mouth inevitably spreads to residents. A senior official from one district said, “The 9th term local elections are just over two years away. After this year, the atmosphere will inevitably shift to local elections next year, so district mayor evaluations are very important.” He added, “Especially employee evaluations can be decisive.”

Anyone in an organization, including lower-level public officials within the district office, cannot avoid evaluations. Daily performance evaluations are basic. Moreover, the leader, the district mayor, needs no further explanation. A district mayor must receive good evaluations from three parties: district employees, residents, and regional committee heads such as members of the National Assembly who influence nominations, to have a long-lasting career. A true leader is one who not only demonstrates competence through local development and achievements but also earns high evaluations for character through communication with employees and residents.