All three mayors — Son Hun-mo of Suncheon, Seo Yeong-hak of Yeosu and Park Seong-hyeon of Gwangyang — are newcomers to their posts.
The three South Jeolla Province cities of Suncheon, Yeosu and Gwangyang — a contiguous urban cluster around Gwangyang Bay — have all unveiled new brand slogans as they enter the ninth term of directly elected local government.
The mayors elected in the June 3 election — Son Hun-mo of Suncheon, Seo Yeong-hak of Yeosu and Park Seong-hyeon of Gwangyang — all defeated incumbents, and each has moved to replace the previous city slogan as part of a broader push to strengthen public services.
Suncheon said Tuesday it had finalized "Together We Open, a Greater Suncheon" as the slogan to mark the new administration's launch, replacing "Suncheon, Ecological Capital of Korea — First Class," which had been used under former Mayor No Gwan-gyu, an independent.
"The new brand slogan expresses in a short, punchy phrase our vision of building a greater future for Suncheon together — through communication and cooperation among citizens, the city administration, businesses and the community," a Suncheon city planning official said.
Seo, who defeated attorney Jeong Gi-myeong in the primary election to become Yeosu's mayor, has adopted "Into the Hearts of Citizens, Into the World — Yeosu on the Rise Again" as his catchphrase, reflecting a drive to overcome the city's petrochemical industry crisis and chart a new course through an island expo.
Park Seong-hyeon, elected as an independent, is promoting the slogan "Renew Gwangyang, Benefit Its Citizens" to signal a shift in the city's governing direction.
"It expresses our determination to bring about a sweeping transformation across Gwangyang's industry, administration and daily life — as both an industrial city and a port city — and to deliver change that citizens can feel," a Gwangyang city official said.
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