Hwang Myungseon Announces Candidacy for Supreme Council, Vows to Usher in "True Era of Popular Sovereignty"

Press Conference Announcing Candidacy for Democratic Party Supreme Council
Hwang: "Overwhelming Victory in Next Year's Local Elections"
"I Will Be the Field Commander for the Lee Jaemyung Administration"
One Day Before Party Convention Candidate Registration
Park Chandae and Jung Cheongrae Move Quickly to Secure Party Support

On July 9, Hwang Myungseon, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, declared his candidacy for the party's Supreme Council, pledging to lead the way in ushering in a "true era of popular sovereignty."

At a press conference held at the National Assembly's Communication Center at around 10:40 a.m. that day, Hwang stated, "Now, we must realize and prove popular sovereignty through laws and institutions, policies and budgets, politics and administration."

As his pledges, Hwang presented the end of internal strife and completion of reforms, realization of party member sovereignty, establishment of a basic society, and strengthening of local autonomy and decentralization. In particular, he vowed to lead next year's local elections, which he called the "first public evaluation of the Lee Jaemyung administration," to an overwhelming victory. Hwang recalled, "During Lee Jaemyung's tenure as party leader, I served as the head of the election campaign committee in two by-elections and led the party to victory. I volunteered to live for a month in Gokseong, Yeonggwang, Asan, and Geoje, directly overseeing the campaigns on the ground. Lee Jaemyung called me the 'field commander.'" He added, "I will gladly serve as the field commander for the Lee Jaemyung administration and the Democratic Party," emphasizing, "With an overwhelming victory in next year's local elections, I will guarantee the success of a government based on popular sovereignty."

On the 28th, at the Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, Hwang Myungseon, mayor of Nonsan and chairperson of the National Association of Mayors, County Governors, and District Heads, delivered a greeting at the "Academic Symposium for Promoting the 8 Major Election Pledges" hosted by the association. This symposium, held to expand local autonomy and balanced development, was attended by eight domestic academic societies, including the Korean Association for Local Government Studies and the Korean Political Science Association. Photo by Kim Hyunmin kimhyun81@

Although Hwang is a first-term lawmaker who entered the National Assembly through last year's general election, he previously served as secretary-general of the Seoul branch of the Democratic Party and as a Seoul city council member, and he was elected three times as mayor of Nonsan in South Chungcheong Province. He also served as chairperson of the National Association of Mayors, County Governors, and District Heads, and was the first among local government heads nationwide to implement practical, citizen-focused policies such as the Violence and Abuse Response Reporting Center, overseas global training programs for all middle and high school students, and 24-hour childcare centers. Within the party, he is recognized as an expert in local autonomy and decentralization.

Earlier, at the Democratic Party's Local Autonomy and Decentralization Democratic Leaders' Conference (KDLC) held on July 7, which was attended by over 1,200 Democratic Party-affiliated local government heads and provincial governors, Hwang was nominated as a candidate for the Supreme Council. At the press conference, not only Democratic Party lawmakers such as Kim Junhyeok, Kim Wooyoung, Lee Gwanghee, Kim Moonsu, Kim Yongman, Noh Jongmyeon, and Yoon Jonggun, but also Park Seungwon, mayor of Gwangmyeong and standing representative of KDLC, and Kim Byeongnae, head of Nam-gu in Gwangju and secretary-general of KDLC, attended to show their support.

With only one day left until candidate registration, the race among party leader candidates to secure support from party members and the general public is intensifying. Park Chandae announced at a press conference at the South Jeolla Provincial Council that he would wrap up his week-long stay in the Honam region and return to Seoul to communicate directly with party members and supporters through a YouTube talk concert. Park also emphasized that he had inherited the National Assembly office previously used by President Lee Jaemyung, appealing to supporters of Lee. Meanwhile, Jung Cheongrae plans to present his vision as a party leader candidate to party members and the public through a forum on party member sovereignty and party reform, a broadcast interview, and a meeting with veterans' organizations at the National Assembly on the same day.