Chong Won-o, the Democratic Party of Korea's candidate for Seoul mayor, targeted the Gangnam line on the first official day of campaigning on the 21st. In contrast to People Power Party candidate Oh Se-hoon, who scheduled mainly in northern Seoul, he began by going after the Gangnam area, where support for the opposition is strong.
At midnight, the candidate visited the Dong Seoul Mail Distribution Center in Seoul to help with early-morning mail sorting, and at 10:30 a.m., he kicked off full-fledged campaigning with a launch rally at Wangsimni Station in Seongdong-gu, his political home turf. According to the campaign's estimate, 2,500 people gathered at the Wangsimni Station plaza. The plaza was packed with people who came to see the candidate, from the stump team in blue campaign attire to ordinary citizens. They cheered, chanting, "Chong Won-o, OK! Oh Se-hoon, out!"
The candidate said, "I will tell you how I did in Seongdong-gu the things Mayor Oh Se-hoon did wrong and failed at," listing what he achieved during his 12 years as Seongdong-gu chief.
In the "local economy" field, the candidate emphasized that Seongdong-gu achieved the highest level of economic growth among Seoul districts. In "transportation," he cited bringing GTX-C to Wangsimni Station, and in "everyday services," he pointed to introducing smart shelters, smart crosswalks, smart smoking booths, and success buses. He also stressed that Seongdong-gu ranked No. 1 in the local government disaster and safety management assessment and received the president's award.
He went on to shout, "Elections are about continuing to elect those who work well, and replacing those who do not. That is a democratic election."
In the afternoon, the candidate met victims of jeonse fraud from Seoul's Youth安心 Housing program. Yoon Yeo-jin, who met the candidate, said, "Because it was called Youth安心 Housing, I thought the public sector guaranteed it and went with a glad heart, but I was hit with a provisional seizure and couldn't get my deposit back," and added, "They promised to return the deposit, but the original promise was 10 years of residence, and Seoul City said they had no reason to take responsibility."
The candidate said, "It's not enough to just return the deposit," and added, "Once the transition team is formed, Seoul City will work closely so that the original status of '10-year residence in安心 Housing' can be restored."
In the afternoon, the candidate visited the site of shoddy construction on GTX-A at Samseong Station, then moved to Express Bus Terminal Station in Seocho-gu to campaign with district chief candidates from the four Gangnam districts (Gangnam-gu, Seocho-gu, Songpa-gu, and Gangdong-gu).
At the event, the candidate and the district chief candidates expressed their intention to "jointly pursue a Seoul-style education city model where reading and AI future education coexist."
Afterward, he plans intensive stump speeches meeting commuters at Gangnam Station. The candidate's side explained the reason for visiting the Gangnam area on the first day of official campaigning by saying, "It's true that many of the redevelopment and reconstruction pledges under the 'step-by-step development' plan include the Gangnam region," and added, "It is commonly assessed that the Democratic Party trails in support in Gangnam, but candidate Chong Won-o, unusually for a Democratic Party Seoul mayoral candidate, is seeing support in Gangnam."