"By-Elections Are Just Around the Corner"…Will People Power Party Fail to Field a Candidate for Yeonggwang County Governor?

Confirmed Candidate for Gokseong County Governor... Yeonggwang County Governor on 10·16 Still Undecided
Nomination Across Entire Honam Region for General Election... Efforts to Shed Yeongnam Party Image

The People Power Party is facing difficulties in finding a candidate for the Yeonggwang County mayoral race in the upcoming October 16 by-elections. The deadline for candidate registration is the 27th, and there is a possibility that the People Power Party may hold the by-election without fielding a candidate for Yeonggwang County mayor.

People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon and floor leader Choo Kyung-ho are posing with the recommended candidates at the party's by-election candidate recommendation certificate ceremony held at the National Assembly on the 23rd. From the second left, Yoon Il-hyun, recommended as the candidate for Busan Geumjeong District Mayor, Park Yong-chul, recommended as the candidate for Incheon Ganghwa County Mayor, and Choi Bong-ui, recommended as the candidate for Jeonnam Gokseong County Mayor. Photo by Yonhap News

A representative of the People Power Party Jeonnam Provincial Party told Asia Economy on the 23rd, "Currently, there is no candidate (for Yeonggwang County mayor)," and added, "Since there is no suitable candidate, we may not field one." The Jeonnam Provincial Party is expected to decide on candidate nomination by the 26th at the latest.

The People Power Party Jeonnam Provincial Party has been actively operating the nomination management committee since the 6th to nominate candidates for the mayoral by-elections in Gokseong and Yeonggwang counties. For Gokseong County mayor, they nominated Choi Bong-ui, former branch manager of MetLife, and his nomination was confirmed by the People Power Party Supreme Council on the same day. Once the Yeonggwang County mayor candidate is decided, all constituencies in the by-elections, including the Busan Geumjeong District Office and Incheon Ganghwa County mayoral races, will have candidates from the People Power Party. Although there was a nomination certificate awarding ceremony on the day, nomination certificates were given only to the three local government head candidates excluding the Yeonggwang County mayor.

The People Power Party has expressed its determination to field candidates in all constituencies in the October 16 by-elections, following the 22nd general election. In the previous general election, the People Power Party nominated candidates in all 28 constituencies in Honam, achieving the milestone of fielding candidates nationwide for the first time in 16 years. Kwak Gyu-taek, the senior spokesperson of the People Power Party, said in a phone call on the day, "We are currently reviewing candidates (for Yeonggwang County mayor)."

The significance the People Power Party placed on nominating candidates in the Honam region during the general election was to shed its image as a Yeongnam-based party and transform into a nationwide party. To encourage candidacies in Honam, a stronghold of the party, they also introduced a measure to fully support the general election deposit of 15 million won for Honam candidates during the 22nd general election. This was because it was difficult to nominate candidates in Honam, where there is strong resistance to the People Power Party. However, analyses suggest that the People Power Party’s desired 'expansion of Honam outreach' is not an easy path. The party is facing difficulties in nominating candidates in the Honam region even in the by-elections held six months after fielding candidates nationwide in the general election.