Jung-gu Throws Open Its Doors to a Bigger Future With Launch of 9th Elected-Term Administration!

Seoul's Jung-gu district will kick off a new four-year journey alongside its residents on Tuesday — the first day of the 9th elected-term administration — under District Mayor Kim Gil-sung.

The district will hold an inauguration ceremony titled "Opening the 9th Elected Term Together" at the main hall of Chungmu Arts Center, where it will unveil its future vision for a "Bigger Jung-gu."

The event has been designed to put residents at the center. About 100 residents were invited through advance registration to ensure broad public participation, and a total of about 1,000 people are expected to attend, including heads of local institutions and civic organizations as well as residents from all walks of life.

The ceremony will run for an hour and a half starting at 3 p.m. It will open with a video featuring congratulatory messages from residents and figures from across society. In place of the stiff VIP introductions typical of past inauguration events, the video format was chosen to honor all residents as equal participants. A pansori performance and a traditional boat-song ensemble will then take the stage.

A video capturing residents' hopes and wishes will also be screened. Residents representing a range of generations — children, parents, youth and seniors — will share their visions and aspirations for Jung-gu under the 9th elected term, collectively sketching the direction the district will take over the next four years.

Kim — who won reelection following his 8th-term tenure — will formally pledge to residents to propel Jung-gu toward a "Bigger Jung-gu" in the 9th elected term. He is set to announce campaign pledges and lay out a blueprint across five areas: a Jung-gu that envisions the future, a Jung-gu where youth can dream, a Jung-gu with strong education, a Jung-gu with comfortable retirement and a Jung-gu full of dignity.

The ceremony will close with a vision-declaration performance featuring both resident representatives and the district mayor. The performance symbolizes residents' hopes and the 9th-term administration's pledges converging into a single shared vision, serving as a ceremonial declaration of a new beginning.

"Over the past four years, we have driven change in Jung-gu together with our residents," Kim said. "The launch of the 9th elected-term administration marks a new starting point — one that builds on those achievements to leap toward a bigger Jung-gu. I ask for the warm attention and support of our residents, the true owners of Jung-gu."