The Seoul mayoral race, the biggest battleground of the June 3 local elections, ended with a victory by People Power Party candidate Oh Se-hoon. Oh led even in areas seen as weak for the People Power Party—Yangcheon, Yeongdeungpo, Dongjak, and Gangdong. These are districts with large-scale redevelopment and reconstruction complexes or that are sensitive to real estate sentiment. Oh's message to prevent a "real estate hell" appears to have powered a come-from-behind win at the end.
As of 9:30 a.m. on the 4th, the Seoul mayoral race had a vote count rate of 97.70%. People Power Party candidate Oh Se-hoon stood at 48.94%, and Democratic Party of Korea candidate Chong Won-o at 48.34%, putting Oh ahead by 0.60 percentage point. Chong had led throughout the count until a golden cross occurred at 7:17 a.m., 13 hours in. With the vote count rate in Songpa District, Oh's stronghold, still in the 70% range, Oh was expected to widen the gap.
At 9 a.m. the same day, candidate Chong Won-o conceded defeat, saying, "I humbly and solemnly accept the choice of the citizens. I fell short, and it is all my fault." Chong said, "I did not get close enough, did not listen deeply enough, and did not win hearts widely enough," adding, "I am sorry for failing to meet the expectations of the citizens who trusted and joined me, as well as the camp officials and fellow party members."
This Seoul mayoral race was a head-to-head between Chong Won-o, who emphasized supporting the Lee Jae-myung administration, and Oh Se-hoon, who stressed checking and criticizing real estate policy. In the end, Seoul voters chose Oh. It appears to be the result of discontent erupting over the Lee Jae-myung administration's real estate policies.
Looking at Oh's vote shares by each of the 25 autonomous districts, the differences are clearer. Oh beat Chong in 10 of the 25 districts. He held the three Gangnam districts—Seocho, Gangnam, and Songpa—and defeated Chong in areas where the People Power Party had long been weak, including Yangcheon, Yeongdeungpo, Dongjak, Jung, and Gangdong. All these areas have large-scale redevelopment and reconstruction complexes. Anxiety over the Lee Jae-myung administration's real estate policies seems to have translated into support for Oh.
Chong Won-o's camp even launched a "Gangnam 4 Districts Special Committee" to soothe real estate sentiment, but in the end Oh's stance of checking the administration gained more traction. A political source said, "The victories in Yangcheon, Yeongdeungpo, and Gangdong were entirely thanks to real estate sentiment," adding, "Oh also drew a fair number of votes in Mapo and Seongdong, showing that he held the Hangang belt, which was seen as the decisive battleground."
The district mayoral races in Seoul also tracked the mayoral result. Of the 25 autonomous districts, the Democratic Party took 17 and the People Power Party took 8. It is the exact opposite of four years ago, when the Democratic Party took 8 and the People Power Party took 17.
Overall, it was a victory for the Democratic Party, but in areas sensitive to real estate, the People Power Party held the line. Yangcheon, Gwangjin, Gangdong, and Yongsan are representative.
Around 10 a.m., in his acceptance speech at the campaign headquarters, Oh again stressed real estate issues. Oh said, "Seoul's biggest pending issue, by far, is real estate," adding, "As jeonse supply plunges and monthly rents soar, many ordinary people are feeling severe pain. In the first week of the new term, I will attend a Cabinet meeting and convey public sentiment to President Lee Jae-myung."