Jeon Eun-soo, the Democratic Party of Korea candidate for the Asan-B parliamentary by-election, has reaffirmed her commitment to relocating her life base to Asan in South Chungcheong Province and devoting herself to regional development. She is appealing for support by highlighting that her experience in the ruling party and at the presidential office makes her a "ready-to-deploy asset" for key Lee Jae-myung administration agendas, including selection as a "Top 10 Startup City" and the cultivation of advanced industries.
According to Jeon's camp on Wednesday, the candidate completed her residence registration in Baebang-eup, Asan, together with her family on April 29. On the same day, she also sold an apartment in Ulsan that she had co-owned with her spouse. Jeon currently holds no real estate in the Ulsan area under her name.
During recent campaign activities, Jeon said, "Asan is a city where Korea's future industries and growth engines converge," adding, "Now, as a citizen of Asan, I will look after local issues most closely and pour all my capabilities into Asan's development."
In particular, she plans to focus on including Asan among the "Top 10 Startup Cities" pursued by the Lee Jae-myung government and on enhancing the competitiveness of advanced industries such as semiconductors, future mobility, and displays. She is also emphasizing her intention to serve as a bridge connecting the central government and the National Assembly to resolve local issues, including advanced industrial complexes such as Samsung Display and the expansion of metropolitan transportation networks.
In an earlier interview with Seoul Economic Daily, Jeon stressed her ties to the Chungcheong region. "I graduated from Gongju National University of Education and worked as an elementary school teacher in Daejeon," she said. "Chungcheong is a place that holds important moments of my youth." She added, "I have actually moved to Asan with my family and am living here. Politics must be shown through life, not words." Not only her spouse but also her elementary school-aged child has completed the transfer to a local school.
Some critics had pointed out, based on recently disclosed senior public officials' asset filings, that Jeon owned an apartment in Ulsan. However, that asset report was prepared based on the cutoff date of December 31 of last year. Jeon's camp explained that "it was a lawful filing in accordance with the cutoff date under the Public Official Election Act."
Political circles are paying attention to the fact that if Jeon is elected, a meaningful record could be set in the political history of women in South Chungcheong. Since former lawmaker Kim Ok-sun, the first female National Assembly member from the Chungcheong region, the line of female lawmakers from South Chungcheong districts has effectively been broken. If Jeon wins, she would become the first female district lawmaker from South Chungcheong in about 40 years, since Kim was elected in the 12th general election in 1985.
