Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon Registers as PPP Candidate, Pushes Party Reform

Seoul’s incumbent mayor Oh Se-hoon has registered to be the People Power Party’s candidate for Seoul mayor, ending weeks during which he delayed his nomination to press for party reform. He spoke at Seoul City Hall today, saying he was entering the race “with a sense of responsibility to Seoul citizens and the spirit of party loyalty.”

Oh criticized party chief Jang Dong-hyuk and the party leadership for not showing a willingness to change that would be acceptable to the public. He added that if the party itself will not change, he will begin changing from Seoul.

He also pledged to make Seoul the starting point of innovation, and to push for party reform by forming an innovation-focused campaign committee that he said should be as robust as a crisis-management body.

Earlier, Oh did not register by the party’s local-election nomination deadline on the 8th, and he called on the leadership to pursue reform. In response, PPP lawmakers issued a party-wide declaration, but Oh said action is what matters and pressed for the launch of an innovation campaign committee before finalizing his candidacy.

Context is important for international readers: Oh Se-hoon is the mayor of South Korea’s capital, a city that is a major economic and technology hub with a large footprint for global business and research. Seoul’s governance can influence policy on housing, urban innovation, digital infrastructure and public services, all of which affect multinational firms and investors operating in Korea.

The People Power Party is the main conservative opposition to the ruling party, and its internal reforms can shape Korea’s national policy direction. Changes in Seoul’s leadership and the party’s reform tempo may affect investor sentiment, urban policy, and the U.S.-Korea alliance dynamic, including cooperation on technology markets, supply chains, and regional security concerns.