Floor leader Han Byung-do of the Democratic Party of Korea has been visiting North Jeolla day after day ahead of the June 3 local elections. That is because public sentiment in North Jeolla, long considered a Democratic stronghold, is moving in a troubling direction. As antipathy toward party leader Jung Chung-rae has grown in the region, some observers say Han, not Jung, has stepped in to soothe North Jeolla voters.
On the afternoon of the 22nd, floor leader Han visited North Jeolla to stump for fellow party members: Jeonju mayoral candidate Cho Ji-hoon, Jinan county chief candidate Jeon Chun-sung, and Wanju county chief candidate Yoo Hee-tae. At the same time, the other "two-top," party leader Jung Chung-rae, will visit Gangneung, Donghae and Samcheok in Gangwon to support Gangwon governor candidate Woo Sang-ho.
After winning another term in the floor leader election held on the 6th, Han formally hit the campaign trail and, as of this day, has visited North Jeolla five times in two weeks. That is roughly once every three days. The previous day, Han attended a press conference where North Jeolla governor candidate Lee Won-taek announced his first campaign pledge and promised policy support.
The Democratic Party of Korea is courting North Jeolla voters because of independent candidate Kim Kwan-young's polling numbers. The party expelled Kim, who was the "incumbent North Jeolla governor," over allegations of cash handouts and then nominated Lee Won-taek. But Lee also faced controversy over fairness after allegations surfaced that a third party paid for his meal expenses. In the end, Kim declared an independent run, saying the party's nomination process was flawed.
Kim and Lee are neck and neck. In a wireless phone interview survey commissioned by KBS and conducted by Embrain Public from the 18th to the 20th on 810 voters in North Jeolla, Lee Won-taek polled at 39% and Kim Kwan-young at 37%. (Margin of error is ±3.4 percentage points at a 95% confidence level. For details, see the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission website.)
Races for basic local government chiefs featuring opposition parties such as the Rebuilding Korea Party and The Progressive Party are also an issue. The Rebuilding Korea Party fielded candidates in Gunsan, Iksan, Jeongeup, Namwon, Jangsu, Gochang and Buan in North Jeolla, and The Progressive Party fielded a candidate in the Jeonju mayoral race in North Jeolla. In particular, the Rebuilding Korea Party's North Jeolla chapter launched its election committee and is going on the offensive by raising corruption allegations against Democratic Party of Korea basic local government candidates.
The burden has also grown for floor leader Han, whose constituency is Iksan-eul in North Jeolla. If the North Jeolla governor post goes to independent Kim Kwan-young, the party leadership and North Jeolla lawmakers could face calls to take responsibility. At the party level, it is issuing spokesperson commentaries almost daily criticizing Kim as part of its support fire.
In political circles, some are saying floor leader Han may have been saddled with a difficult task. Underlying this is the premise that "nominations are the responsibility of the party leadership." A ruling camp figure said, "It is not a 'two-track strategy by the party leader and the floor leader,' but rather the appearance of floor leader Han alone trying to straighten out North Jeolla." Another Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker said, "If the Democratic Party of Korea loses the North Jeolla governor election, it will damage Jung's leadership, but it could also spark calls for Han to take responsibility."
After finishing his stump in Gangwon on this day, party leader Jung Chung-rae plans to head to South Jeolla on the 23rd and 24th. His schedule for a North Jeolla campaign stop has not yet been set.