Jeon Jae-soo of the Democratic Party Likely to Win Busan Mayoral Race... Park Hyung-joon Concedes, "Wishing for Busan's Progress as a Citizen"

In the 9th nationwide simultaneous local elections, Jeon Jae-soo, the Democratic Party of Korea candidate, is emerging as the likely winner in the race for Mayor of Busan Metropolitan City.

According to the National Election Commission, as of 5 a.m. on June 4, with 97.58% of the votes counted, Jeon is currently leading with 50.41% of the vote, ahead of the incumbent mayor, Park Hyung-joon of the People Power Party, who has 48.02%. If Jeon's victory is confirmed, the Democratic Party will reclaim Busan for the first time in five years.

Yonhap News Agency

On this day, Jeon visited his campaign office and stated, "I will humbly accept the will of the Busan citizens who have chosen change, and I will work hard and continue to work hard. I am truly grateful and thankful to the people of Busan," adding, "I would also like to acknowledge candidate Park, who competed with me to open the future of Busan, for all his efforts."

Park also conceded defeat. He said, "I sincerely thank the great citizens of Busan who have supported me and helped lead the city administration, and I congratulate candidate Jeon Jae-soo. As I wrap up my term as the 8th popularly elected mayor, I will return to being a Busan citizen and wish for the continued development of the city."

This brings the Democratic Party even closer to reclaiming Busan after five years. However, as a result of Jeon's candidacy for mayor, a by-election was held for the Buk-gu Gap National Assembly seat, where independent candidate Han Dong-hoon won, meaning the Democratic Party has now lost all of its incumbent seats in Busan. Jeon remarked, "In Buk-gu, among the 18 National Assembly members from Busan, we have only one seat, and candidate Ha Jung-woo was also defeated," adding, "We will do our utmost to make the Democratic Party a party that is more loved by the citizens."

Meanwhile, Jeon, who is originally from Buk-gu in Busan, previously served as an administrator in the Second Secretariat to former President Roh Moo-hyun. After four unsuccessful attempts in Busan, Jeon was elected to the 20th National Assembly. He has since been re-elected in both the 21st and 22nd general elections, establishing himself as the leading Democratic Party figure in the Yeongnam region.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.