Next President Election to Be Held on the 26th
Heo Jungmu, Shin Moonseon, and Chung Monggyu Remain Eligible as Candidates
The next president election of the Korea Football Association, which had been suspended due to the court's provisional injunction decision, will be held this month.
On the 3rd, the Football Association Election Management Committee held its first meeting and decided to hold the next president election on the 26th. Former national team coach Heo Jeong-mu, Shin Moon-seon, an invited professor at Myongji University's Graduate School of Record Information Science specializing in sports record analysis, and current president Chung Mong-gyu will all maintain their candidacy. Previously, President Chung's eligibility had been controversial due to the government's demand for severe disciplinary action.
The Election Management Committee consists of three members from the Central Election Commission, three from the legal sector, two from academia, and three journalists. Park Young-soo, who served as the Secretary-General of the Central Election Commission, was elected chairman by secret ballot. After four hours of discussion, the committee decided to hold the 55th Korea Football Association presidential election on the 26th of this month, with detailed schedules to be finalized at the meeting on the 8th.
Earlier, candidate Heo filed a provisional injunction on December 30 last year at the Seoul Central District Court to prohibit the presidential election. He cited reasons such as the unclear composition of the Election Management Committee, inadequate announcement of the schedule and procedures, the election being conducted only by offline direct voting without an online method?which effectively excluded professional football coaches and players participating in winter training camps?and the formation of an electorate 21 fewer than the regulation (maximum 194) due to 'non-submission of personal information consent forms,' arguing that the election management was conducted unfairly.
Jung Mong-gyu, President of the Korea Football Association, attending the National Assembly. Photo by Kim Hyun-min
In response, the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 50 (Presiding Judge Im Hae-ji) approved the provisional injunction request filed by former coach Heo Jeong-mu against the Korea Football Association's presidential election last month. Consequently, the Football Association announced that "the election date will be temporarily postponed" and "further schedules will be announced once established."
Upon the confirmation of the election schedule, President Chung Mong-gyu issued a statement saying, "I consider this fortunate." He added, "I expect the new Election Management Committee to successfully conduct a fair election that meets the public's expectations by addressing procedural defects raised by the court." He continued, "As the current president and a candidate, I feel regret and a heavy responsibility for the disruptions caused to important matters of the Football Association due to the election delay," and urged, "I call once again for the cessation of false claims and slanders aimed at delaying the election, and for all candidates to respect the association's bylaws and participate in the election."
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