AFP Quotes Gi-Wook Shin on South Korea's June 2026 Local Election Outcomes
AFP Quotes Gi-Wook Shin on South Korea's June 2026 Local Election Outcomes
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s ruling Democratic Party won the majority of key local contests in the country's local elections, but faced a symbolic blow as conservative opposition incumbent Oh Se-hoon secured another term as mayor of Seoul.
In South Korea’s June 3, 2026, local election, the ruling Democratic Party won most contests, but lost the pivotal Seoul mayoral race, suggesting voters were reluctant to grant the party unchecked power. This election served as the first nationwide test of the Lee Jae Myung administration, Stanford sociologist Gi-Wook Shin, director of APARC's Korea Program, told news agency AFP.
The Seoul mayoral race attracted particular attention because the office is widely viewed as a launching pad to the presidency. But while the re-elected conservative Seoul mayor, Oh Se-hoon, is a seasoned political veteran and one of the most recognizable figures in his party, "he projects a sense of political fatigue, offering no fresh image and no new agenda to anchor a national candidacy," Shin noted.
Read the two AFP reports featuring Shin's commentary:
