Outlook on Four-Way Race in Medical Association President Election... Three Hardliners, One Moderate Candidate Structure

Joo Suho, Kim Taekwoo, and Lee Dongwook as Hardliners Against the Government
Gang Heekyung Evaluated as a Relatively Moderate Faction

The number of candidates running in the by-election for the president of the Korean Medical Association (KMA), scheduled for early next year, has been narrowed down to four. Lee Sang-woon, chairman of the Korean Hospital Directors Association, who initially announced his candidacy, declared on the 25th that he would not run, while Kang Hee-kyung, emergency committee chairperson of the Seoul National University College of Medicine and Hospital Professors' Association, announced her candidacy on the same day.

(From left) Joo Suho, CEO of Future Medical Forum; Kim Taekwoo, President of the National Council of City and Provincial Medical Associations; Lee Dongwook, President of Gyeonggi-do Medical Association; Kang Heekyung, Emergency Response Committee Chair of Seoul National University College of Medicine and Hospital Faculty Association.
[Image source=Yonhap News, Gyeonggi-do Medical Association]

According to the medical community on the 26th, Ju Su-ho, representative of the Future Medical Forum; Kim Taek-woo, chairman of the National Association of City and Provincial Medical Associations; Lee Dong-wook, chairman of the Gyeonggi Province Medical Association; and Kang, the emergency committee chairperson, are expected to run in the presidential election held over three days from January 2 next year. Among them, Kang is known to have a relatively moderate stance, while the other three are classified as having a more hardline position compared to Kang.

Registration for candidates in the KMA presidential by-election will take place on December 2-3, with the final candidates announced on the 3rd. The election will be held from January 2 to 4 next year, and if no candidate receives a majority of votes, a runoff election will be held on the 7th and 8th. Since the impeachment of former president Lim Hyun-taek, the KMA has been operating under the leadership of emergency committee chairperson Park Hyung-wook. However, the next KMA president will lead the full-scale medical-government negotiations to resolve the medical crisis. Park announced his intention not to run in the by-election during the emergency committee chairperson election.

Lee Sang-woon, who had also received a nomination letter along with the others, stated on the day, "The current situation requires the medical community to unite and raise the banner of struggle," adding, "I believe the KMA president should be the candidate who can lead the struggle most effectively," thereby expressing his intention not to run.

On the other hand, Kang, who had received a nomination letter on the 21st but had not declared candidacy, announced her run on the day, saying, "What the emergency committee of a single university advocates will be less effective than what the KMA advocates," and "I believe that by understanding the medical community from a broader perspective within the KMA, I can make more realistic and effective proposals."

Ju Su-ho is a surgical specialist who graduated from Yonsei University College of Medicine. During the 2000 medical separation crisis, he served as the spokesperson for the KMA's government struggle organization, the 'Medical Rights Acquisition Struggle Committee,' entering the KMA leadership. He was elected as the 35th president of the KMA in 2007 and was credited with stabilizing the then-divided executive branch in a short period. He also ran in the 42nd presidential election in March but lost in a runoff against former president Lim Hyun-taek.

Kim Taek-woo is a surgical specialist who graduated from Gyeongsang National University College of Medicine. After the resignation of former KMA president Lee Pil-soo's executive team in February, he served as the 'Emergency Committee Chairperson to Block Medical School Expansion.' In 2021, he also worked as the 'Emergency Committee Chairperson to Block the Nursing Act,' formed to oppose the Nursing Act. He currently serves as the chairman of the Gangwon Province Medical Association and the chairman of the National Association of City and Provincial Medical Associations, which includes 16 metropolitan and provincial medical association chairpersons nationwide.

Lee Dong-wook is an obstetrics and gynecology specialist who graduated from Kyungpook National University College of Medicine. He has been leading the Gyeonggi Province Medical Association as its 34th chairman since 2018, marking seven years in the position. Since the medical-government conflict in February this year, he has been protesting every morning for over 100 days at President Yoon Seok-youl's arrival route. On weekends, he holds rallies with residents and medical students in front of Seoul City Hall.

Kang is a pediatric specialist who graduated from Seoul National University College of Medicine. She treats pediatric nephrology patients at Seoul National University Children's Hospital. As the third emergency committee chairperson of the Seoul National University College of Medicine and Hospital Professors' Association, she has represented Seoul National University professors in voicing concerns related to the medical-government conflict.