Kim Jae-won, Supreme Council Member of the People Power Party, challenging for the Gyeongbuk Provincial Governor position in the June 3 Local Elections [Photo = Yonhap News]

The People Power Party's primary election for the Gyeongbuk Provincial Governor candidate in the June 3 local elections has been narrowed down to a one-on-one contest between an incumbent and a non-incumbent.

According to the People Power Party's Nomination Management Committee on the 20th, Supreme Council Member Kim Jae-won won the preliminary primary for Gyeongbuk Provincial Governor and advanced to the main primary. Accordingly, Kim will compete against incumbent Gyeongbuk Governor Lee Cheol-woo for the final candidate position.

This primary election was conducted in a so-called 'Korean Series' format. The structure involves first selecting one non-incumbent candidate, followed by a final primary election with the incumbent head of the local government.

Previously, a total of six people had entered the Gyeongbuk Provincial Governor primary race, including Governor Lee Cheol-woo, Supreme Council Member Kim Jae-won, former lawmaker Baek Seung-joo, former Pohang Mayor Lee Kang-deok, lawmaker Lim Yi-ja, and former Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Choi Kyung-hwan. Among them, candidate Kim Jae-won, who passed the preliminary primary, has emerged as a challenger to the incumbent.

The Nomination Management Committee has partially accepted the fairness issues raised during the primary process. They have accepted the demand for an extension of the campaign period raised by the candidates and decided to extend the primary period until mid-April.

In contrast to Gyeongbuk, the nomination for the Chungbuk Provincial Governor will be conducted through an 'all-member primary' system. This is interpreted as a measure to address recent controversies surrounding speculation of a predetermined candidate.

The Nomination Management Committee has allowed all applicants, excluding incumbent Chungbuk Governor Kim Young-hwan who is subject to a cut-off, to participate in the primary. Consequently, a competition is expected to form between former Daegu High Prosecutors' Office chief Yoon Gap-geun, former National Police Agency Commissioner Yoon Hee-geun, former Chungju Mayor Cho Gil-hyeong, and former lawmaker Kim Soo-min.

However, former Mayor Cho Gil-hyeong has announced his intention to withdraw in protest of the predetermined candidate rumors. While the Nomination Management Committee is attempting to persuade him to participate, his actual participation in the primary remains uncertain.

The Chungbuk Provincial Governor primary will be conducted through two debate sessions from March 29th to April 9th, and the final candidate will be selected by combining the electoral college vote (50%) and general public opinion polls (50%) on April 15th-16th.

Within the People Power Party, there are mixed evaluations of this primary system, with some describing it as a "compromise structure that acknowledges the incumbent's premium while maintaining competition," and others interpreting it as an "adjustment to preemptively block controversies regarding nomination fairness."