Rep. Kim Sang-wook (Democratic Party of Korea, Ulsan Nam-gu A) officially declared his candidacy for Ulsan mayor on Sunday. This marks his first electoral bid under the Democratic Party banner since defecting from the People Power Party after opposing its position against impeachment during the December 3 martial law crisis.
At a press conference held at the National Assembly Communication Center, Kim stated, "I am running for Ulsan mayor with an earnest desire to halt Ulsan's decline and repay the grace that citizens have shown me with results."
He diagnosed Ulsan's current situation as a "crisis." Kim warned, "With young people leaving and industries declining, the city may not even maintain its metropolitan city status within years," adding that "the next three years are Ulsan's last golden opportunity for growth." He presented his vision for overcoming the crisis, pledging swift structural reforms including building a democratic city, an open city, a manufacturing AX (AI transformation) leading city, and a welfare city.
Kim also sharply criticized incumbent Ulsan Mayor Kim Du-gyeom of the People Power Party. Taking aim at the current administration's core slogan "Newly Creating a Great Ulsan," he said, "We must not imitate Hitler's Germany that championed the great Germanic people, or Trump's America that champions a great America," criticizing the authoritarian and rigid social structure.
Kim candidly addressed the political challenges stemming from his party switch. "Ulsan is both my political home and simultaneously the most difficult battleground," he said. "The People Power Party labels me a traitor, and the Democratic camp treats me as a stranger and feels uncomfortable, but I will not yield and will break through head-on."
He added, "If I resign my district seat to run for mayor, there is concern that an extreme-right, anti-democratic figure could become a National Assembly member, but I could not turn away from the Ulsan mayoral election."
Regarding his campaign strategy, Kim pledged a "clean election." He stated, "Negative campaigning and smear tactics are cowardly and despicable old-style politics. Rather than exposing competitors' weaknesses, I will exclude organizational electioneering and pursue principled, harmonious politics."