Ansan-A district becomes by-election battleground

The race to become the ruling Democratic Party's candidate in the Ansan-A electoral district by-election is heating up, with key liberal figures from different factions appearing likely to face off against each other.

Ansan-A is one of the three constituencies in Ansan where foreign nationals account for over 13 percent of the population, with more than 93,000 non-Korean residents as of end-2025. Ansan-A covers the southeastern part of the city and is considered a liberal stronghold.

Kim Nam-kuk, a former presidential secretary for digital communications, was the first to announce his National Assembly bid.

On Thursday, Kim said in a press conference at the National Assembly that he is the right person for the seat and that his experience in the Assembly, the ruling party and the presidential office equips him to bring tangible results.

Kim also pledged to attract jobs at South Korean conglomerates to Ansan, move the Ansan Line underground and carry out a southward extension of the New Ansan Line, a commuter rail line scheduled to open in December, claiming that he is capable of drawing the central government's support.

Kim's six-year political career has been marked by ups and downs. Following his 2020 general election victory in another Ansan electoral district, he was embroiled in controversy after he was found to have traded cryptocurrency during a parliamentary meeting.

The revelation also indicated he had owned a considerable amount of cryptocurrency that was undeclared. The controversy led to his decision to leave the main liberal party in 2023.

Kim did not run in the 2024 general election, but he returned to politics a year later as a presidential secretary in June last year upon Lee's inauguration.

But Kim found himself in yet another controversy after his text messages with Democratic Party Rep. Moon Jin-seog were leaked to the media in December. The messages indicated that Moon was asking Kim to exercise influence over Cheong Wa Dae's vetting process. A couple of days later, Kim resigned from the presidential secretary post.

Kim was tapped as the Democratic Party's spokesperson in February.

Alongside Kim, former three-term liberal lawmaker Jeon Hae-cheol, who represented a constituency in Ansan, was reportedly considering a bid to rerun in the election.

Jeon, who was considered a key figure in the faction supportive of former liberal President Moon Jae-in, dropped out of the candidate selection process when Lee Jae Myung was chair of the Democratic Party.

Yang Moon-seok, who defeated Jeon in the party's candidacy race and won the 2024 general election, lost his parliamentary seat in March after he was convicted of fraud at the Supreme Court.

Shortly after the court ruling, Yang openly asked Kim Yong, who was Lee's key aide when Lee served as mayor of Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, and as governor of Gyeonggi Province, to run in the election in Ansan. Lee's aide Kim has yet to announce his stance on the potential bid.

Moreover, the minor liberal Rebuilding Korea Party chair, former Justice Minister Cho Kuk, is rumored to be considering a bid to represent Ansan-A. The chair of the minor liberal Basic Income Party, Rep. Yong Hye-in, who is an incumbent lawmaker under the proportional representation system, has also expressed her intent to run for the seat.

Ansan-A district is among several constituencies to be contested in by-elections alongside the local elections in June.

Two seats became empty in June last year as Lee Jae Myung, then a Democratic Party lawmaker, was elected president, and Lee picked three-term lawmaker Kang Hoon-sik as his chief of staff.

Over the course of 10 months, three Democratic Party lawmakers were removed from their seats due to Supreme Court rulings.

More vacancies in parliament are expected to follow, with more incumbent lawmakers running in local elections. The latest seat confirmed to be vacated is Hanam A district in eastern Gyeonggi Province, held by Democratic Party Rep. Choo Mi-ae, who was confirmed to be running for Gyeonggi Province governor.