Preliminary Uijeongbu Mayoral Candidate Shim Hwaseop Appoints Former Gangwon Governor Lee Kwangjae as Chair of Support Committee

"Welcoming the successor to Roh Moo-hyun’s spirit and an innovative administration expert feels like gaining a thousand troops and ten thousand horses"
Former Governor Lee Kwangjae: "Shim Hwaseop is a sincere and perfectly qualified candidate to lead innovation in Uijeongbu"

Shim Hwaseop, a preliminary candidate for mayor of Uijeongbu for the Democratic Party of Korea, has gained strong momentum in his campaign by appointing Lee Kwangjae, former governor of Gangwon Province, as chair of his support committee.

Sim Hwaseop, a preliminary candidate for mayor of Uijeongbu from the Democratic Party of Korea, appointed Lee Kwangjae, former governor of Gangwon Province, as chairman of his support committee on the 22nd. Provided by candidate Sim Hwaseop.

Preliminary candidate Shim stated on the 23rd that former Governor Lee Kwangjae had on the 22nd abruptly agreed to take on the role of chair of his support committee.

Lee Kwangjae, who has taken on the position of chair of the support committee, is regarded within the Democratic Party of Korea as a strategist and an expert in innovative administration, having served as the 35th governor of Gangwon Province, secretary general of the National Assembly, three-term National Assembly member, and head of the National Situation Room at the Blue House during the Roh Moo-hyun administration. In particular, despite his high approval ratings in the Gangwon-do region in recent days, he has drawn attention for declaring that he will not run in the gubernatorial election and instead has decided to defend the Seongnam-si Bundang-gap district, a difficult constituency for the Democratic Party of Korea. It is known that former Governor Lee’s decision to accept the position of chair of Shim Hwaseop’s support committee stems from common ground the two share in “citizen-participation politics,” which they have built up over more than 20 years since the days of “Nosamo.”

Former Governor Lee Kwangjae said, “The ‘world where people can truly live’ that former President Roh Moo-hyun once dreamed of must today be proven through the competence to resolve inequality and revive local economies,” adding, “I agreed to serve as chair of the support committee because preliminary candidate Shim Hwaseop is precisely the right person to swiftly break through Uijeongbu’s many pending issues and to most perfectly transplant the Lee Jaemyung administration’s national vision into the local field.”

Preliminary candidate Shim Hwaseop responded, “As a successor to the spirit of Roh Moo-hyun, I feel as if I have gained a thousand troops and ten thousand horses by being able to invite former Governor Lee Kwangjae, who has extensive administrative and political experience, to serve as chair of my support committee,” and added, “By adding former Governor Lee’s experience and wisdom, I will surely win back Uijeongbu and repay the citizens with an administration that changes their lives.”

Preliminary candidate Shim Hwaseop is currently serving as special adviser to Democratic Party of Korea leader Jung Cheongrae and as standing representative of the Uijeongbu headquarters of the Basic Society Association, and until recently he was senior vice chair of the Uijeongbu-eul District Committee of the Democratic Party of Korea. He completed his master’s and doctoral degrees in electronic engineering at Sogang University and is a professor at Shinhan University in Uijeongbu, where he currently serves as dean of the College of Engineering, contributing to the cultivation of local talent and science and technology education. He began his path in citizen-participation politics in the 2002 presidential election as a core member of Nosamo (an abbreviation of “People Who Love Roh Moo-hyun”).