Choi Won-yong Wins Democratic Nomination for Pyeongtaek Mayor, Eyes June 3 Race

The local political scene is closely watching whether Choi Won-yong can win his first bid for Pyeongtaek mayor, with attention rising after he secured the Democratic Party of Korea nomination for the June 3 local elections by winning a runoff on April 20. The campaign is also moving to form a “one team” with participation from candidates he faced in the primary.

Choi formally declared his run for Pyeongtaek’s ninth popularly elected mayor on Feb. 24 at the National Assembly’s press briefing room. He advanced through the primary and clinched the nomination after an all-out final push. (Aju Economy report dated April 20, 2026) With the People Power Party’s candidate not yet decided, observers cautioned against early predictions, but many said Choi has at least laid groundwork for a competitive race.

Choi, born in 1967, is from Poseung in Pyeongtaek and is known to have deep local ties. He earned a degree in public administration from Chung-Ang University and a master’s degree from Seoul National University’s Graduate School of Public Administration, then began his government career after passing the first local senior civil service exam in Gyeonggi Province. He later served as a council secretariat chief, head of the provincial planning and coordination office, and in 2022 as Pyeongtaek’s deputy mayor.

He has been described as a pragmatic, field-oriented official with strong planning and execution skills. The article cites his work during the COVID-19 pandemic, when he oversaw disaster relief income tasks and helped design a system to deliver payments in 15 days, easing concerns that distribution by the promised date would be impossible. An anecdote about then-Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung — described in the article as President Lee Jae-myung — praising him as a “great civil servant” is still widely repeated.

Choi later was promoted to head the Gyeonggi Free Economic Zone Authority and ended a 30-year public service career. During the 21st presidential election, he joined the Democratic Party and became vice chair of Lee’s local decentralization innovation committee and co-chair of campaign committees for Pyeongtaek’s Eul and Byeong districts, working to support Lee’s election.

Though some speculation circulated that he could join the Cabinet, he instead entered the Pyeongtaek mayoral race. In his February announcement, Choi said, “For more than 30 years, I have directly taken responsibility for planning, budgeting and policy implementation at the center of administration in Gyeonggi Province and Pyeongtaek.” He added that as head of Gyeonggi’s “Pyeongtaek Development Support Group,” he handled practical work to lay the groundwork for the Godeok International New Town and Samsung Electronics’ Pyeongtaek campus, and emphasized that as Pyeongtaek deputy mayor he practiced on-the-ground administration while communicating with residents.

He presented three visions: an economy centered on K-semiconductors, an AI future city, and transportation built around a “Pyeongtaek 30-minute living zone” linking the city, along with an education system “completed within Pyeongtaek.” His campaign has continued releasing detailed pledges, saying its core philosophy is that change begins by solving small inconveniences in residents’ daily lives.

Choi is also described as someone who steadily honed his administrative skills over more than three decades in public service. Voters are watching whether he can translate that experience into what he calls a Pyeongtaek renaissance in the ninth popularly elected administration.



* This article has been translated by AI.

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