Woo Sang-ho drops to 12th in regional leaders' K-brand index

The Asia Brand Research Institute, a big data analytics firm, announced Friday that Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae topped the K-brand index for regional government heads in its September 2026 data analysis.

It marked the first time Choo has ranked first since the launch of the ninth round of local elections. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon came in second, followed by Ulsan Mayor Kim Sang-uk (3rd), Busan Mayor Jeon Jae-soo (4th), Incheon Mayor Park Chan-dae (5th), South Jeolla-Gwangju Special City Mayor Min Hyeong-bae (6th), Daegu Mayor Choo Kyung-ho (7th), South Chungcheong Province Governor Park Soo-hyun (8th), Daejeon Mayor Heo Tae-jeong (9th), Sejong Mayor Jo Sang-ho (10th), North Chungcheong Province Governor Shin Yong-han (11th), Gangwon Province Governor Woo Sang-ho (12th), South Gyeongsang Province Governor Park Wan-su (13th), Jeju Governor Wi Seong-gon (14th), North Gyeongsang Province Governor Lee Cheol-woo (15th) and North Jeolla Province Governor Lee Won-taek (16th).

In the August data analysis one month earlier, Oh led the rankings, with Choo in second place. The full August order was: Oh Se-hoon (1st), Choo Mi-ae (2nd), Park Chan-dae (3rd), Jeon Jae-soo (4th), Choo Kyung-ho (5th), Kim Sang-uk (6th), Min Hyeong-bae (7th), Park Soo-hyun (8th), Heo Tae-jeong (9th), Woo Sang-ho (10th), Lee Cheol-woo (11th), Park Wan-su (12th), Jo Sang-ho (13th), Lee Won-taek (14th), Shin Yong-han (15th) and Wi Seong-gon (16th).

At the top of the rankings, Choo and Oh swapped positions — Choo rising as Oh fell. Kim Sang-uk climbed three spots, while Jeon Jae-soo and Min Hyeong-bae each gained one place. Park Chan-dae and Choo Kyung-ho each dropped two spots.

In the middle of the table, Park Soo-hyun and Heo Tae-jeong held steady at eighth and ninth, respectively. Woo fell from 10th to 12th, while Jo Sang-ho climbed from 13th to 10th.

Lee Cheol-woo recorded the steepest drop, falling from 11th to 15th, while Shin Yong-han posted the biggest gain, rising from 15th to 11th.

Park Wan-su slipped one place from 12th to 13th, and Lee Won-taek fell from 14th to last place at 16th. Wi Seong-gon, who had finished last in August, climbed two spots within a month to 14th.

Han Jeong-geun, head of the Asia Brand Research Institute, said the K-brand index "comprehensively reflects digital data accumulated in daily life — including search activity, content consumption, and positive and negative engagement — to diagnose public perception and response, making it an objective supplementary indicator that complements conventional polling." He added that Sejong Mayor Jo Sang-ho's entry into the top 10, on the strength of his emphasis on completing the administrative capital and delivering citizen-centered governance, contrasted with Gangwon Province Governor Woo's drop to 12th and out of the top 10, "showing that public attention to local leaders can shift from one period to the next."