Seoul Citizens Once Again Support Progressives... Jeong Geun-sik "Victory of Common Sense, Continuing Innovative Education"

Another Progressive Superintendent Emerges Following Cho Hee-yeon
Begins Work Immediately After Inauguration Without Handover
"Fulfilling the Mission of Progressive Succession Amid Ideological Attacks"
Education Healing Promised Through Learning Diagnosis and Healing Center

In the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education by-election, progressive candidate Jeong Geun-sik was elected. Following former Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon, who held the position for the past 10 years, another progressive superintendent has emerged. The conservative camp failed to unify their candidates once again, resulting in another unsuccessful attempt to reclaim the position after the three elections in which former Superintendent Cho was elected.

According to the Office of Education on the 17th, the newly appointed Superintendent Jeong visited the Seoul Election Commission in the morning to receive his certificate of election and then went to work at the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education in Jongno-gu. Although the inauguration ceremony is scheduled for the afternoon, he will immediately begin his duties as there is no transition period due to the by-election. On his first day, it is expected that he will meet face-to-face with Deputy Superintendent Seol Se-hoon and the heads of various departments and offices.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In the by-election held on the 16th, Superintendent Jeong won with a final vote share of 50.24% (963,876 votes), defeating conservative candidate Cho Jeon-hyeok, who received 45.93%, by a margin of 4.31 percentage points. The third-place candidate, Yoon Ho-sang, garnered 3.81% of the votes. After overcoming an initial close contest, Superintendent Jeong widened the gap with candidate Cho to more than 10 percentage points and secured victory in less than three hours after counting began. Upon confirming his election, Superintendent Jeong stated, "I report that we have fulfilled the mission of continuing progressive innovative education, which is the hope of all," adding, "This is a victory of common sense that protected the foundation of our education against extreme ideological attacks led by moderate conservatives."

He particularly emphasized, "The recent Nobel Prize in Literature awarded to author Han Kang holds great significance for us," and added, "Education that fosters a fierce historical consciousness and cultural and artistic sensitivity, like her works, is the key to brightening Seoul's future." Superintendent Jeong pledged, "Since this is a by-election, I will enter the Office of Education immediately after organizing the surroundings and start Seoul education together with the citizens," and promised, "I will listen to your voices and create a proud Seoul education."

Voters appear to have supported the progressive camp’s promise to continue the previous superintendent’s educational policies rather than drastic changes. Former Superintendent Cho, who succeeded in serving three terms, maintained the progressive superintendent position for the past decade. The last-minute unification with candidate Choi Bo-seon, who ran independently, also seems to have influenced the winning momentum. Conservative candidate Cho also proposed unification with candidate Yoon in the final stages of the election, but Yoon declined.

Since Superintendent Jeong pledged to inherit key policies of former Superintendent Cho, such as innovative schools and the Student Human Rights Ordinance, immediate changes are unlikely. However, changes in the learning system through the establishment of a 'Learning Diagnosis and Healing Center (tentative name)' are expected. Superintendent Jeong has promised to build a system that can diagnose and heal issues such as learning difficulties and borderline intelligence through this center. Attention is also focused on the design of the 'Seoul-type Learning Compass,' which can assess students' learning abilities without exams.

The Student Human Rights Ordinance will be maintained with improvements to the accountability aspects for students, and support is expected for the enactment of the Student Human Rights Act being promoted by the opposition. Having served as chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission during the Moon Jae-in administration, Superintendent Jeong plans to strengthen history education by leveraging his strengths as a historical sociologist, including establishing a history committee and a history education resource center within the Office of Education. He also promised to develop a 'Seoul Education Polarization Index' to identify educational disparities between regions and social classes.