Ahn Ho-young, a Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker, on Wednesday officially declared his candidacy for the June 3 local election for Jeonbuk governor, a race thrown into turmoil by the expulsion of incumbent Governor Kim Gwan-young. Kim signaled on his social media that he would "calmly find a way," leaving the door open to not running.
At a press conference at the National Assembly on Wednesday, Ahn said, "Governor Kim's achievements and experience must carry on as assets for Jeonbuk's provincial administration." He added, "I will minimize the administrative vacuum and safeguard the stability of provincial governance based on policy solidarity." Ahn declared, "I will concretely realize the philosophy of people's sovereignty and balanced development under the Lee Jae-myung government in Jeonbuk's provincial administration," and said, "I will respect and carry on Governor Kim's achievements while supplementing areas that fell short."
Ahn also resigned from his position as chair of the National Assembly's Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor Committee to pursue his gubernatorial bid. Initially, unlike other standing committee chairs such as lawmakers Choo Mi-ae, Park Joo-min and Shin Jung-hoon who stepped down to run in local elections, Ahn had retained his post and was widely expected not to run. Ahn was reportedly planning to support Governor Kim's re-election through policy solidarity, but reversed his position after Kim was expelled from the party on Tuesday amid allegations involving cash-filled envelopes.
Regarding his reversal on not running, Ahn said, "There was a misunderstanding," explaining, "The preliminary candidate registration notice for the Jeonbuk governor race was issued last Monday, with registration set for the 4th, so I had not registered." He added, "I maintained the standing committee chairmanship because supplementary budget deliberation and legislation remained to be handled in the National Assembly."
Ahn was cautious about the possibility of candidate unification with Kim. "The situation has changed significantly since Governor Kim was expelled, so it is not appropriate to discuss candidate unification at this point," he said.
Kim, who received the expulsion, is reportedly reviewing follow-up measures including running as an independent. Kim wrote on his Facebook page, "The party has cast me into the wilderness, but I will not abandon my duty to the people of the province," adding, "I will calmly find a way." Political circles interpreted this as Kim leaving open the possibility of an independent run.
"It was a cruel night. I was deeply shocked by the expulsion decision I never imagined," Kim said. "I corrected the issue as soon as I became aware of it. The party made its decision without even giving me a sufficient chance to explain the situation. I was devastated."
Meanwhile, Ahn's entry and Kim's departure from the primary have plunged the Jeonbuk governor race into chaos. The Democratic Party primary is now expected to be a two-way contest between Ahn and Rep. Lee Won-taek, who had previously declared his candidacy. Although Jeonbuk is a traditional stronghold for the Democratic Party, analysts note that victory cannot be guaranteed if Kim, who has led various opinion polls, proceeds with not running under the party banner.