Lee Hyun-sang
The author is a columnist at the JoongAng Ilbo.
The election calendar facing the Lee Jae Myung administration closely resembles that of the Moon Jae-in government. Both administrations confronted local elections about a year after taking office and parliamentary elections roughly three years into their terms. Two presidential impeachments altered Korea’s political timetable, creating unavoidable comparisons between the two progressive governments.
President Lee Jae Myung delivers a memorial address during the 71st Memorial Day ceremony at the Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak District, Seoul, on June 6, three days after the nationwide local elections. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]
The Democratic Party (DP) achieved a historic landslide in the 2018 local elections, held 13 months after Moon took office. It won 14 of 17 metropolitan mayoral and gubernatorial races. The predecessor of today’s People Power Party (PPP) captured only Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province. Independent Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong’s reelection was one of the few surprises.