Can Park Hee-jung Revitalize Pohang? Key Strategies for the 2024 Election

During her announcement, Park stated, “Pohang is facing one of its most challenging periods.” She highlighted various indicators, including population decline, deteriorating employment, and increasing business closures.

As a three-term councilor, Park’s candidacy is expected to shake up the dynamics of the upcoming June 3 Pohang mayoral election, especially with the current mayor facing term limits.

Park pointed out, “The registered population, which was 519,000 in 2014, has decreased to 488,000 in 2025, and the number of workers in the steel industrial complex has dropped from 16,000 to 13,000.” She added, “The employment rate in the first half of 2025 is 59.6%, below the national average of 61.4%, and the unemployment rate has risen to 3.3%. The business closure rate is projected to reach 10.7% in 2024.”

Emphasizing her experience in addressing the steel industry crisis, she stated, “I took action, not just words, to designate our area as a preemptive response zone for employment crises.” She added, “We need a mayor from the ruling party who can work in sync with the federal government to design and implement national projects.”

Regarding this election, Park asserted, “This local election occurs while the Democratic Party is responsible for national governance, creating a significant opportunity for change through collaboration between the federal government and local administration.”

Pohang has a history of electing Democratic Party mayors, and in the 2018 local elections, Democratic candidate Heo Dae-man came close to winning with 42.41% of the votes.

With the current mayor facing term limits, a new competitive landscape is forming, renewing attention on the Democratic Party’s potential to challenge for leadership.

During the press conference, Park presented her vision for the city under the slogan “Rebooting Pohang with Park Hee-jung.”

First, she promised to create a “city that attracts national strategic projects” by securing the National Arctic Shipping Information Center and fostering marine, logistics, energy, and data industries in preparation for the Arctic shipping era.

Second, she proposed transitioning Pohang into a “city of industry for the next 100 years” through innovation in the steel industry, responding to RE100 and carbon neutrality goals, and developing a maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) industry for naval vessels and ships, along with a community-driven energy transition model.

Third, she vowed to create a “city that retains its residents” by introducing free public transportation for youth, a package for young adults settling down, and a system to address women’s career interruptions.

Park Hee-jung has been elected in three local elections—in 2014, 2018, and 2022—serving as a three-term city councilor and chair of the Administrative Affairs Committee in the 9th Pohang City Council. Until recently, she led the Democratic Party’s regional committee for Pohang’s Nam-gu and Ulleung-gun districts.