Veteran DP lawmaker Choo Mi-ae wins Gyeonggi race to become Korea's first woman governor

Democratic Party (DP) candidate Choo Mi-ae was elected Gyeonggi governor, becoming the first woman to serve as governor of a provincial government.

Choo received 55.04 percent of the vote, while the People Power Party (PPP)'s candidate, Yang Hyang-ja, trailed with 39.37 percent, according to the National Election Commission. Choo led Yang by 15.67 percentage points, or about 1.07 million votes.

Choo demonstrated her political strength starting from the party primary.

She was nominated as the DP's candidate for Gyeonggi governor by defeating incumbent governor Kim Dong-yeon and Rep. Han Jun-ho, who is considered part of the DP's pro-Lee Jae Myung faction. The PPP countered by nominating Yang, a former Samsung Electronics executive, but failed to overcome Choo's momentum.

Throughout the campaign, Choo emphasized political stability under the new administration and continued development of Gyeonggi, the province surrounding Seoul, seeking support not only from liberal voters but also from centrists and conservatives.  

She also targeted the large commuter population in Gyeonggi and the chronic issue of traffic congestion, and pledged to enable Gyeonggi residents to commute to greater Seoul within 30 minutes. She promised to shorten commuting times by expanding transportation networks, including ensuring the timely opening of GTX lines.

In the industrial sector, Choo pledged to complete the so-called K-semiconductor ecosystem in southern Gyeonggi. The plan aims to strengthen the semiconductor ecosystem by leveraging the presence of major chipmakers, including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, in the region.

Choo was born in Daegu in 1958 and graduated from Gyeongbuk Girls' High School and Hanyang University's College of Law. After passing the 24th National Bar Examination and completing training at the Judicial Research and Training Institute, she served as a judge. She entered politics in 1995 after being recruited by former President Kim Dae-jung, then head of the National Congress for New Politics. In 1996, she won a National Assembly seat representing Seoul's Gwangjin-B constituency. She played a key role in Kim's successful 1997 presidential run, with her tenacious campaigning earning her the nickname Choo-d'Arc, a combination of her surname Choo and Joan of Arc.

Choo lost her seat in the 2004 general election after facing backlash for supporting the impeachment of then-President Roh Moo-hyun, but returned to the National Assembly in the 2008 election and continued to serve through the 19th and 20th Assemblies. During the 18th Assembly, she chaired the Environment and Labor Committee. She was suspended from party membership for two months after pushing through labor-related legislation with only lawmakers from the then-ruling Grand National Party — the predecessor of today's conservative PPP — present while preventing opposition lawmakers from entering the committee room, despite objections from within her own party.

Choo gained national prominence after being elected leader of the DP in 2016, helping steer the party through the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye. She subsequently played a key role in the DP's victories in the 2017 presidential election and the 2018 local elections. Under the Moon Jae-in administration, she served as justice minister and led prosecutorial reform efforts. During her tenure, the National Assembly passed legislation restructuring investigative powers between the police and prosecutors, granting police the authority to close investigations independently and abolishing prosecutors' authority to direct police investigations. The process led to a high-profile clash with the prosecutor general at the time, Yoon Suk Yeol, who would later become president.

Although she did not run in the 2020 general election, Choo returned in the 2024 election by winning the Gyeonggi Hanam-A constituency to become a six-term lawmaker. After President Lee Jae Myung's election victory, she served as chair of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee. As chair of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, she oversaw the passage of legislation establishing a special court division for insurrection cases, three judicial reform bills and measures to abolish the Supreme Prosecutors' Office and create a public prosecution agency and a major crimes investigation agency.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

BY SUK GYEONG-MIN [[email protected]]