Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.
Oh Se-hoon defies exit poll to retain Seoul mayor’s office in razor-thin race
People Power Party candidate Oh Se-hoon speaks in front of Seoul City Hall, Thursday, after winning the mayoral race by a narrow margin in the ninth nationwide local elections Wednesday. The victory secures his fifth term and if completed, will bring his total tenure as Seoul mayor to 14 years and six months. Yonhap
By Jung Min-ho
In a stunning political turnaround, incumbent Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has secured a victory in Wednesday’s local elections, overcoming an early exit poll projection that had forecast a loss to his liberal rival Chong Won-o.
According to the National Election Commission Thursday, as of 9:30 a.m., with 97.7 percent of the votes counted, Oh of the conservative People Power Party obtained 48.94 percent of the vote, defeating Chong of the governing Democratic Party of Korea, who garnered 48.34 percent.
Chong had maintained a comfortable lead during the initial stages of the count. But by 7:20 a.m., roughly 13 hours after the beginning of the counting, Oh steadily erased the deficit to complete a dramatic come-from-behind win.
Speaking to reporters at 9:30 a.m., Chong offered his congratulations to Oh on his election victory, saying he would humbly and solemnly accept the choice of Seoul citizens.
The joint exit poll, conducted by major broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS, put Chong at 51.4 percent and Oh at 46 percent.
With this hard-fought win, Oh is expected to solidify his position as one of the key figures in both municipal politics and his conservative camp.