Progressives Score a Landslide in Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, and Make Gains Even in Six Races Without Incumbents [People's Choice on June 3]

Exit polls from broadcasters in the nationwide elections for superintendents of education in 16 cities and provinces showed the progressive camp winning a landslide by taking full control of key battlegrounds in the Seoul metropolitan area, including Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon Metropolitan City.
As progressives reclaimed local power in areas such as Gyeonggi Province, where conservative superintendents had been in office, the Lee Jae Myung administration's push to strengthen the public nature of education is expected to gain further momentum in its second year.
One education official summed it up by saying, "Voters ultimately chose capable progressive education leaders who support the public nature of education and the stability of the Lee Jae Myung administration's education policy."
The Seoul metropolitan triangle, widely seen as the barometer of the race, was a complete victory for the progressive camp. The Seoul superintendent race turned into a chaotic multi-candidate contest, with a record eight candidates running after both sides failed to unify behind a single contender. But exit polls released at 6 p.m. by the country's three major terrestrial broadcasters showed incumbent progressive candidate Geun-sik Chung leading conservative candidate Cho Jun-hyuk by a margin outside the error range, with 39.0 percent to 21.2 percent, giving him a strong path to reelection. The result reflected Seoul voters' support for policy continuity and the stability of an incumbent.
The biggest surprise of the election was the progressive camp's recapture of education power in Gyeonggi Province, which it had lost to conservatives in the previous race. Exit polls projected progressive candidate Ahn Min-seok winning a landslide with 58.2 percent, far ahead of conservative incumbent superintendent Im Tae-hee, who received 41.8 percent. Gyeonggi Province had been expected to struggle because of early friction over unifying progressive candidates, but a late surge of organized support from parents who wanted to back government stability changed the outcome. In Incheon Metropolitan City, incumbent Do Seong-hoon, who had strong name recognition despite the progressive camp's split field, led with 37.1 percent, beating conservative candidate Lee Dae-hyung and others to signal a likely third term and complete the progressive sweep in the capital region.
Across the country, the advantages and drawbacks of incumbency were sharply divided.
In Daegu, conservative candidate Kang Eun-hee won 51.5 percent, defeating Im Seong-mu with 29.5 percent and all but securing a third term. In North Gyeongsang Province, conservative incumbent Lim Jong-sik held on with 45.0 percent, but that was not enough to stop the broader weakening of the conservative camp. By contrast, in Gangwon Province, where public sentiment had been shaken by the legal risks surrounding the conservative incumbent, progressive candidate Kang Sam-young took the lead in the exit polls with 43.8 percent, beating incumbent Shin Gyeong-ho, who had 35.2 percent, and signaling a generational shift. In the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Metropolitan City race, Kim Dae-jung, the incumbent from South Jeolla Province whose name carried symbolic weight, pulled far ahead with 40.4 percent, defeating Jang Gwan-ho and others by a wide margin and moving closer to becoming the first superintendent of the integrated city. In Busan, Kim Seok-joon, a progressive former two-term superintendent, also posted 49.6 percent, outpacing Jeong Seung-yoon with 34.0 percent and laying the groundwork for a possible third term.
Progressive candidates also made gains in the six 'new face' battlegrounds where no incumbent superintendent was running. In Ulsan, Jo Yong-sik, who is seen as continuing the line of a former progressive superintendent, led with 44.2 percent, ahead of Kim Joo-hong at 32.0 percent. Sung Kwang-jin in Daejeon, Im Jeon-su in Sejong Special Self-Governing City, and Lee Byeong-do in Chungcheongnam-do also moved into the lead group.
In South Gyeongsang Province, progressive candidate Song Young-gi led the challenger field by defeating conservative candidate Kwon Soon-gi, 42.2 percent to 38.7 percent. In North Jeolla Province, where the election was held under an acting leadership system after the incumbent superintendent was forced out over a violation of election law, progressive candidate Cheon Ho-seong, who had run a close race in the previous election, won a clear lead with 56.2 percent, beating Lee Nam-ho, a former Jeonbuk National University president, who had 43.8 percent. Jeju Special Self-Governing Province also added to the surprises, with progressive candidate Ko Eui-sook overtaking incumbent Kim Kwang-soo, 45.1 percent to 42.0 percent.
monarch@fnnews.com Kim Man-gi Reporter