Election Upset: Why Kim Young-rok’s Bid for a Third Term as Jeonnam Governor Failed

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Kim Young-rok, who proposed and worked to achieve administrative integration between Jeonnam and Gwangju, failed to secure a third term.

On April 14, the Democratic Party’s Central Election Committee released the runoff results for the Jeonnam–Gwangju unified mayoral race, confirming Min Hyung-bae as the party’s nominee for the general election.

Min will now face candidates from the People Power Party, the Progressive Party, and the Justice Party in the general election.

Kim failed to advance from the runoff.

After passing the civil service exam in 1977, Kim served as mayor of Gangjin County and Wando County, deputy mayor of Mokpo, and deputy governor of Jeonnam, gaining experience in both municipal and provincial administration.

He served in the 18th and 19th National Assembly and was the first minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs under President Moon Jae-in. He was elected governor of Jeonnam in 2018 and was re-elected to a second term.

He championed the administrative integration of Gwangju and Jeonnam and played a decisive role in launching the Jeonnam–Gwangju Special Integrated City, securing cooperation from residents, Gwangju city officials, the National Assembly, and the central government.

Under his administration, Jeonnam topped job-performance rankings for 66 months across the seventh and eighth elected terms, the province attracted 10 trillion KRW (7.5 billion USD) in national funding, and he helped secure the National AI Computing Center and an AI Data Center—achievements that made him one of the race’s leading contenders.

During the primary, he built a broad coalition with support from Rep. Shin Jeong-hoon and Mayor Kang Ki-jung and attempted a last-minute comeback.

He was ultimately unable to attract enough votes. Observers say voters were drawn to Min because he is seen as close to the president and for his leadership on prosecutorial reform—he even left the Democratic Party in 2022 to push for a bill separating investigation and prosecution.

Local residents also appeared fatigued by a potential third term and, with a new metropolitan government about to be established, seemed to prefer change over continuity.

A local political source said, \”Given the president’s strong approval, residents likely associate Min with the presidency and recall his role leading prosecutorial reform. It seems the community wants change.\”