Yeosu's first 1970s-born mayor skips inauguration, writes handwritten letter to citizens

Seo Young-hak, who skipped his inauguration ceremony, said: "The answers are in the field."

Seo Young-hak, elected as Yeosu's first mayor born in the 1970s, skipped his inauguration ceremony and instead wrote a handwritten letter to citizens to mark the start of his four-year term.

The handwritten-letter approach was pioneered by Reform Party lawmaker and party leader Lee Jun-seok, who won his seat in Dongtan (Hwaseong-eul) and used the method during both the general election and the presidential election.

In the letter, Seo said he regretted not having the chance to greet citizens in person at an inauguration. "I convey in this letter my gratitude for the trust you have placed in me and my commitment to honoring it," he wrote. "I will always keep in my heart the responsibility and weight you have entrusted to me, listen closely to the voices of citizens, and build the foundation of a 'citizen-sovereign Yeosu' where citizens are the true owners."

He added that Yeosu is a city of boundless potential. "I will further develop Yeosu's strengths — where industry, tourism, culture and islands come together — and build a city where citizens can feel the change for themselves," he wrote. "I have always believed the answers lie in the field. Rather than deliberating at a desk, I will work through issues together with citizens and find solutions."

As his first official engagement after taking office, Seo visited the 2026 Yeosu World Island Expo site in Dolsan-eup — the city's most pressing project — where he held a senior staff meeting on-site and urged preparations to stay on track for a September opening.

A Yeosu native, Seo graduated from Yeosu High School and Chonnam National University, passed the local higher civil service examination to enter public office, and won his first election in the June 3 local elections.