Former Gongju Mayor Kim Jeongseop: "Gongju Needs a Mayor Who Can Get to Work Immediately"

"Collapse of 100,000 Population, Key Projects Adrift... Incompetent and Irresponsible Administration, Change Is the Answer"

Former Gongju Mayor Kim Jeongseop of the Democratic Party of Korea held a press conference on the 22nd and announced his candidacy for the Gongju mayoral election to be held in June.

Kim Jeongseop, former mayor of Gongju in South Chungcheong Province and a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, announced his candidacy for Gongju mayor in the upcoming local elections to be held in June, during a press conference at Gongju City Hall on January 22.

Kim stated, "Gongju cannot afford to repeat past mistakes. The city needs a proven mayor who can be put to work immediately."

He criticized the current city administration, saying, "The future growth engines of Gongju, which were designed and promoted together with citizens during the 7th popularly elected administration, have either stalled or lost direction due to political calculations and showmanship-driven governance."

He continued, "At the end of last year, Gongju's population dropped to the 90,000 range, while Sejong Administrative Capital is rapidly moving toward completion. At this point, if the captain is incompetent, irresponsible, and lacks public trust, it is only right to replace them."

As the core vision for the 9th popularly elected administration, Kim proposed: ▲ building a "Gongju-style innovation city" encompassing the Songseon and Donghyeon new towns and the Donghyeon Smart Creative City district; ▲ creating a cultural heritage content industry cluster based on the historical and cultural assets of the old downtown; and ▲ establishing a wide-area transportation network connecting Daejeon, Sejong, and Naepo.

Regarding the Songseon and Donghyeon new towns, he said, "They were Gongju's last growth engine to maintain a population of 100,000, but Mayor Choi halted the project, causing it to drift. As the top priority of the 9th administration, I will restart the project to develop a self-sustaining innovation city for 20,000 people and secure demand from the administrative capital area as Sejong completes its development."

For revitalizing the old downtown, he said, "I will create a structure that connects historical and cultural assets to research, development, and industry. By establishing a cultural heritage and arts content industry ecosystem combined with AI and digital technologies, we will attract both youth employment and private investment."

In the area of transportation, he stated, "By completing the second Geumgang Bridge early and optimizing the BRT routes, I will make Gongju a key transportation hub connecting Daejeon, Sejong, and Naepo. We will launch the second phase of the BRT extension as soon as possible, and if the administrative integration of South Chungcheong and Daejeon is realized, I will formally request the extension of the Daejeon Urban Railway to Gongju."

Kim emphasized, "During the 7th popularly elected administration, I ushered in the era of a 1 trillion won budget for Gongju, secured a total of 502.3 billion won in national and provincial funds over four years, and attracted new investments totaling 1.4816 trillion won from 112 companies. The mayor's role is not to learn on the job, but to prove themselves through results."

Regarding the issue of merging Gongju National University and Chungnam National University, he pointed out, "Despite being a critical issue for Gongju's next 100 years, the promise to provide 3 billion won in city funding was not disclosed to the city council or citizens. This is a textbook case of irresponsible administration."

He added, "The merger issue should be clearly resolved by February, and a solution that citizens can accept must be presented before running in the election."

On the collapse of the 100,000 population mark, he criticized, "The mayor, as the administrative head, remained silent without any explanation, which is a dereliction of duty."

Regarding the conflict over the power transmission lines, he said, "It is the mayor's responsibility to establish concrete measures and standards to protect the health and property rights of residents in affected areas."

On the decline in integrity, he stressed, "Suspicions are spreading over the allocation of government contracts and other issues. The drop in integrity is a warning for the entire city administration, and drastic recovery measures are needed."

Kim Jeongseop was born in 1965 in Useong-myeon, Gongju. He graduated from Gongju High School and the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Korea University. He built a 20-year political career in the National Assembly, the Democratic Party, and the Blue House. He served as deputy spokesperson at the Blue House during the Roh Moo-hyun administration and was elected mayor of Gongju in 2018, leading the city for four years.