The Democratic Party has recruited Ha Jeong-woo, a former senior presidential secretary for AI future planning, and selected Jeon Eun-su, a former presidential spokesperson, ahead of the June 3 National Assembly by-elections. The party is widely seen as putting figures from the Lee Jae-myung administration at the forefront to rally its base.
At a recruitment ceremony at the National Assembly on the 29th, party leader Jeong Cheong-rae said Ha, nicknamed “HaGPT,” was “a talent I wanted to bring in no matter what,” adding he would have made repeated appeals to do so.
Jeong described Jeon as “a capable person” who grew up outside the capital region and has a strong commitment to balanced development, noting she had been recruited ahead of the 22nd general election. He urged both to “win,” signaling they would receive nominations.
The party said it is using three tracks for strategic nominations in the by-elections: outside recruitment, internal selection and redeploying existing figures. Ha falls under outside recruitment, while Jeon was chosen internally, it said.
Ha is being mentioned as a candidate in Busan’s Buk-gu Gap district, and Jeon in South Chungcheong Province’s Asan Eul. Byun Sung-wan, head of the party’s Busan chapter, and Lee Jung-moon, head of its South Chungcheong chapter, attended the event.
After Jeong’s remarks, Ha said he would return to his “warm hometown of Busan” and deliver development, calling the moment a “golden time” for major change and a leap forward. “If we use physical AI, Busan can become the very center of global maritime AI,” he said.
Jeon said she had stayed connected to people through her work as a teacher, lawyer and spokesperson. “Now I will face the public directly and solve difficulties on the ground,” she said.
The party has already made strategic nominations for Kim Nam-jun, a former presidential spokesperson, in Incheon’s Gyeyang Eul, and Kim Nam-kuk, a Democratic Party spokesperson who previously served as a digital communications secretary, in Gyeonggi Province’s Ansan Gap. If Ha and Jeon are confirmed, the number of figures from the Lee administration fielded by the party would rise to four.
The by-elections will be held in 14 districts and are being dubbed a “mini general election.” Vacancies include five previously confirmed seats and nine additional openings due to reasons including President Lee’s inauguration, the resignation of presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik, and rulings that voided election wins, as well as seats vacated by runs for metropolitan mayor and governor posts. Of the 14 districts, 13 were previously held by the Democratic Party.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.