DP narrows Seoul race to three

Mar 26, 2026, 09:02 am

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Candidates Park Joo-min, Jung Won-oh and Jeon Hyun-hee advanced to the final round of the Democratic Party’s Seoul mayoral primary (from left, in ballot order). / Lee Byung-hwa, Song Eui-joo

Democratic Party of Korea has finalized three candidates for its Seoul mayoral primary ahead of the June 3 local elections, setting up a three-way race among Park Joo-min, Jung Won-oh and Jeon Hyun-hee.

The party announced that the three candidates advanced through a preliminary primary conducted entirely by party members. Rep. Kim Young-bae and former Military Human Rights Center official Kim Hyung-nam failed to make the final round.

The Democratic Party did not disclose vote shares from the preliminary round. Hong Gi-won, vice chairman of the party’s central election management committee, said the policy is intended to ensure fair competition without giving advantages or disadvantages to specific candidates.

He also warned against the spread of speculative or false information regarding vote shares and rankings via text messages or social media, stressing that any intentional dissemination of false data by campaign teams would be dealt with strictly.

The final primary to determine the party’s candidate will take place from April 7 to 9. Unlike the preliminary round, which relied solely on party members, the final vote will combine 50 percent party member voting and 50 percent public opinion polling.

Joint televised debates among the three candidates are scheduled for March 31 on MBC and April 3 on KBS.

#Park Joo-min #Jung Won-oh #Jeon Hyun-hee #Seoul mayor race #Democratic Party