Oh Se-hoon says People Power leader hurts local candidates

April 21 (Asia Today) -- Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said Monday that People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyuk has become a burden to candidates ahead of South Korea's June 3 local elections, underscoring growing friction with the party leadership.

Speaking on KBS Radio, Oh said he had little interest in Jang's recent trip to the United States and criticized the lack of explanation about whom he met or what was discussed.

"Local election candidates are in a period when every day feels agonizing," Oh said. "I do not particularly want to criticize a U.S. trip that came without an explanation of who was met or what was discussed."

He added that the party leadership appeared to be in a position where it had little else to do and was left making excuses.

Oh also criticized Jang's reported instruction to review party affairs over support by lawmaker Jin Jong-oh for former party leader Han Dong-hoon.

Ahead of an election, conservatives and centrists outside the Democratic Party should be embraced to improve electoral prospects, Oh said, adding that in that sense Jang was becoming a burden to candidates.

Oh, who was confirmed Friday as the People Power Party's candidate for Seoul mayor, had already signaled distance from the leadership by calling for party reform on the scale of a refounding and by saying Jang's role should be reduced.

He said he was planning an independent campaign committee centered on incumbent lawmakers in Seoul and local party organizers, with room for civic representatives as well.

"Even if we cannot build a huge campaign committee like the Democratic Party, I am envisioning people who can work in a practical and effective way," he said.

Oh also responded to a Democratic Party attack group branding itself as a headquarters to judge his decade in office. He defended the Seoul city government's record, saying the city had reduced debt through prudent fiscal management and rolled out policies that later spread nationwide, including the Climate Companion Card and the Garden City initiative.

Explaining his recent choice of a green tie, Oh said he had used green ties and jackets since his first Seoul mayoral run in 2006 to symbolize his commitment to making Seoul an environmentally friendly city.

He said the color reflected his intention to return to his original principles.

Oh also appealed for support by framing the election as a chance to check what he described as the dominance of the Lee Jae-myung administration and to complete Seoul's development agenda.

-- Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

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Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260421010006539

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This story was originally published April 21, 2026 at 8:10 PM.