Seoul Assembly Deputy Speaker Kim In-je Declares Bid for Speaker

Kim In-je, deputy speaker of the Seoul Metropolitan Council and a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, officially declared his candidacy Monday for speaker of the 12th Seoul Metropolitan Council's first half-term, vowing aggressive scrutiny of what he described as Mayor Oh Se-hoon's safety negligence, wasteful vanity spending and lingering media control.

At a press conference Monday, Kim said Seoul voters had delivered a clear mandate by giving the Democratic Party 80 of the council's 118 seats — a two-thirds supermajority with the power to override vetoes. "That means the 10 million citizens of Seoul have issued a solemn order: check the runaway administration of Mayor Oh Se-hoon and protect the lives and livelihoods of citizens in crisis," he said.

Kim laid out four core priorities he said would define his speakership: investigating the Seosomun overpass collapse and GTX rebar defects, conducting a full probe of the Han River bus project, restoring TBS broadcasting, and defending a balanced development budget for both sides of the Han River.

On safety, Kim announced he would immediately invoke the council's administrative investigation authority — combining the Seosomun overpass fatal collapse and the GTX rebar omission scandal into a single, integrated inquiry targeting what he called the city government's systemic safety negligence.

"The structural failures and collapse at major infrastructure directly tied to citizens' daily lives are clear man-made disasters caused by the city's complacent oversight," Kim said. He added that upon taking office he would activate the council's highest oversight power — the right to conduct administrative investigations — and establish a special "Citizens' Safety Truth-Finding Committee" within the council to leave no question unanswered about the causes of faulty construction and the city's administrative conduct.

On accountability, Kim declared he would form a dedicated special committee to investigate the Han River bus project, which he said has been plagued by safety incidents since its launch, scrutinizing every stage from inception to current operations.

"We will put every aspect under a microscope from scratch — including the toxic clause that makes taxpayers cover private operators' losses, as well as vessel safety and operational viability — and we will not hesitate to scrap any part that does not serve the safety and interests of citizens," Kim said.

On media, Kim pledged to immediately pursue the normalization of TBS, the public broadcaster he said has been thrown into disarray.

"Upon taking office, I will amend the ordinance that one-sidedly abolished funding support," he said. He outlined a plan for the council to lead the drafting of a stable financing framework and a roadmap to restore TBS's public-service mission and editorial independence, returning the broadcaster to Seoul's 10 million citizens.

On balanced development, Kim declared all-out opposition to what he called Mayor Oh's Han River-focused vanity budget and pledged to make defending a balanced north-south development budget his top priority. A doctor of urban studies and former chair of the 10th Seoul Metropolitan Council's Urban Planning and Balanced Development Committee, Kim said, "The budget is not the mayor's publicity fund — it is the force that changes citizens' lives and corrects broken regional balance. Not a single won of vanity spending unrelated to citizens' lives will pass easily, and I will focus every power of the speakership on securing balanced north-south development and budgets for livelihoods and safety."

A four-term council member who has served as Democratic Party floor leader in the 9th council, urban planning committee chair in the 10th, and deputy speaker in the second half of the 11th, Kim said he has spent 12 years preparing for the speakership. He said he would install a "members' pledge tracker" at the center of the speaker's office and activate a strong policy consultative body with the city government to personally oversee the fulfillment of all 118 council members' local campaign pledges.

"The Seoul Metropolitan Council will no longer stay silent in the face of the executive branch's unchecked power," Kim said. "I will be a battle-ready field commander who checks the Oh Se-hoon administration most forcefully, an innovative speaker with strong drive, and a warm speaker for the people who wipes away citizens' tears."

Declaration of Candidacy for Speaker of the 12th Seoul Metropolitan Council

"A strong council protects its citizens."

A strong council. An innovative speaker.

Respected citizens of Seoul —

And my proud and cherished fellow members of the Democratic Party of Korea.

I am Kim In-je, deputy speaker of the Seoul Metropolitan Council.

On Monday, with a profound sense of duty to restore the council's standing and protect the lives of 10 million citizens, I solemnly declare my candidacy for speaker of the 12th Seoul Metropolitan Council.

The livelihoods of Seoul's citizens are under strain. Soaring oil prices and inflation driven by conflict in the Middle East, deepening instability in global supply chains, and the sweeping AI transformation reshaping the world order — Seoul stands at the center of an unprecedented, compounding global crisis.

We cannot afford to lose focus for a single moment. We must lace up our shoes tightly once more. The Seoul Metropolitan Council, as the hall of the people's will, must fulfill every role it can for the better lives and dreams of Seoul's 10 million citizens in this era of popular sovereignty.

In the June 3 local elections, Seoul's citizens issued us a clear and solemn order. They entrusted executive power to Mayor Oh Se-hoon, but they gave the Democratic Party of Korea an overwhelming 80 of the council's 118 seats — a two-thirds supermajority with the power to override vetoes. The meaning is clear: check the runaway administration of Mayor Oh Se-hoon. Protect the lives of citizens in crisis. And make the Seoul Metropolitan Council a strong council that stands on the side of the people once more.

Respected fellow council members, for the past 12 years I have prepared everything solely for the advancement of the Seoul Metropolitan Council and for the future of its citizens. I demonstrated strong political leadership as Democratic Party floor leader in the second half of the 9th council, proved outstanding policy capability as chair of the Urban Planning and Balanced Development Committee in the first half of the 10th council, and earned recognition for my ability to manage council operations as deputy speaker in the second half of the 11th council. I have driven innovation in the Seoul Metropolitan Council — amending an ordinance to suspend council activity allowances for members serving prison sentences, a reform no other legislature in the country had achieved, establishing the no-work, no-pay principle that meets the public's expectations. I also created a confirmation hearing system for the heads of Seoul city-invested and city-funded institutions, who had previously faced no oversight once appointed by the mayor — so that bodies including the Seoul Metro and the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation now undergo public and council confirmation hearings. And during the COVID-19 pandemic, as chair of the Special Committee on Post-COVID Response and Livelihood Safety, I helped protect Seoul's economy. I am confident in calling myself a prepared candidate with political skill, policy capability and operational experience combined.

I, Kim In-je, have completed every preparation to build the strongest possible council to stand up to an overgrown executive branch and check the Oh Se-hoon administration. A strong council begins with strong leadership and strong cooperation. As speaker, I will listen to every single member's voice and be a dependable field commander who delivers results for each and every one of them. A council where the speaker leads the charge and members answer with results — I will unite all the capabilities of the Seoul Metropolitan Council to produce real, tangible change that 10 million citizens can feel.

I make six reform pledges to revive the council.

First, I will declare all-out war on vanity and self-promotional budgets. The budget is not a tool for the mayor to build a legacy — it is the force that changes citizens' lives. Not a single won of showy, self-promotional spending unrelated to citizens' lives will pass easily. I will make balanced north-south development and budgets for livelihoods and safety my top priority.

Second, I will restore the broken TBS without fail. TBS is not the broadcaster of any particular power — it is the citizens' broadcaster. The Seoul Metropolitan Council will directly draw up a TBS normalization roadmap, correct the one-sidedly enacted ordinance abolishing funding support, amend ordinances and improve systems to restore its public-service mission and editorial independence, build a stable financing framework, and recover the public character that has been lost.

Third, I will immediately activate a special committee to find the truth on citizens' safety. For serious safety incidents that have alarmed citizens — including the Seosomun overpass collapse and the GTX faulty construction controversy — I will hold those responsible to account to the end. I will immediately invoke the council's powerful administrative investigation authority. There will be no compromise whatsoever when citizens' lives and safety are at stake.

Fourth, I will re-examine the Han River bus project from scratch. Citizens' tax money cannot be a tool for politically motivated achievement projects. The toxic clause that covers private operators' losses with public funds will be corrected without fail. I will thoroughly verify safety, business viability and fiscal soundness from the ground up, and if the project does not serve citizens' interests, I will boldly call for a full review.

Fifth, I will open a new era of one policy aide per council member. A member's competitiveness is the council's competitiveness. Through amendments to the Local Autonomy Act, I will complete the policy support framework and dramatically raise the expertise and capability of the Seoul Metropolitan Council.

Sixth, I will transform the speaker's office into an intense strategic command center. I will install a "members' pledge tracker" at the heart of the speaker's office, activate a strong policy consultative body with the city government, and focus every authority and capability of the speakership on ensuring that each member's precious local campaign pledges translate into concrete results.

Respected citizens of Seoul. The Seoul Metropolitan Council will no longer stay silent in the face of the executive branch's unchecked power. We will stand firm against policies that ignore citizens' lives. We will hold accountable to the end any administration that threatens citizens' safety. We will never abandon the duty of checks and balance entrusted to us by the people.

I, Kim In-je, will be the field commander who checks the Oh Se-hoon administration most forcefully. I will be an innovative speaker leading a strong council with powerful drive. And above all, I will be a warm speaker for the people who wipes away citizens' tears. A strong council protects its citizens. Strong leadership revives the council. Four terms of proven ability. Twelve years of prepared experience. All preparations are complete. Now I will prove it with results.

Thank you.

Candidate for Speaker of the 12th Seoul Metropolitan Council Deputy Speaker of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, Kim In-je