Naju Mayor Yoon Byung-tae holds a commanding lead in a candidate suitability survey ahead of the June 3 local elections, more than doubling the support of his nearest rival in the race for the Democratic Party nomination.
According to a Seoul Economic Daily report on Sunday, Yoon received 43.5% support in a poll of 500 Naju residents aged 18 and older conducted January 2-3 by Mono Research on behalf of Pressian's Gwangju-South Jeolla bureau. Jeon Nam Provincial Council member Lee Jae-tae followed with 19.9%, while former Naju Mayor Lim Sung-hoon garnered 9.5% and Kim Deok-soo, deputy chairman of the Democratic Party's central policy committee, received 9.0%.
The survey also showed strong approval for Yoon's administration, with 59.0% of respondents rating his performance positively—27.6% saying "very good" and 31.4% "fairly good." Negative ratings totaled 30.6%, with 10.4% responding "don't know" or not answering.
Yoon's successful bid to bring a 1.2 trillion won ($890 million) artificial sun research facility to Naju drew particularly strong support. When asked whether the project would benefit regional development and economic revitalization, 75.0% of respondents agreed, while 12.3% disagreed and 12.6% were unsure or did not respond.
The facility, which will research nuclear fusion energy, is expected to attract approximately 300 related companies, create around 10,000 jobs, and generate economic ripple effects of about 10 trillion won. The project has positioned Naju as an emerging hub for energy and science-based future industries.
In the traditionally Democratic-leaning region, winning the party nomination is widely seen as tantamount to winning the general election. However, potential candidates from other parties, including the Rebuilding Korea Party, could add uncertainty to the race. Former Mayor Lim is reportedly in the process of joining the Rebuilding Korea Party ahead of a potential bid.
The telephone survey was conducted using automated response methods with randomly selected mobile phone numbers from three major carriers. The response rate was 7.2%, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.
