With the June 3 local elections approaching, the National Assembly by-election for Busan’s Buk-gu Gap district has become a tense standoff over whether to hold televised debates. Independent candidate Han Dong-hoon has pushed strongly for broadcaster-hosted debates, while Democratic Party candidate Ha Jung-woo says he will participate only in the legally mandated debate and will skip additional media-organized forums, creating a pointed contrast. On the 12th, Han posted on Facebook that he had immediately accepted KBS Busan’s invitation to a live debate on the 22nd and urged Ha and Park Min-sik to join him. He intensified the pressure, saying that with Buk-gu residents and the people of Busan watching closely, Ha and Park should confidently appear at the debate.
Ha’s campaign, however, said it will take part in the official TV debate run by the election commission but will not attend extra debates hosted by media organizations. Local political observers interpret that stance as a risk-management strategy by the political newcomer Ha to offset his lack of debate experience. They also note that with Park and Han exchanging harsh negative attacks on social media, extra debate appearances could unnecessarily stoke controversy.
At his campaign opening on the 10th, Ha stressed he would focus on improving residents’ lives and producing tangible results rather than engaging in partisan bickering. With calls for open candidate debates clashing with cautious assessments of little practical gain, the early-stage “debate standoff” over momentum in the by-election is likely to continue for now.
The atmosphere in the Seoul mayoral race is much the same. On the 11th, People Power Party candidate Oh Se-hoon visited Guro District and repeatedly urged Democratic candidate Jung Won-oh to “come to a one-on-one debate in any format and under any conditions.” Oh blasted Jung’s apparent refusal—framed as a commitment to “fight citizens’ inconveniences”—saying that avoiding debates disqualifies someone from serving as mayor. The confrontation intensified after PPP lawmaker Joo Jin-woo released a court ruling related to Jung’s past violent conviction and called for his resignation, adding a legal-risk offensive to the campaign. While ruling-party candidates have been avoiding debate stages, opposition figures sought to rally their bases with on-the-ground policy announcements. Oh toured aging neighborhoods in Guro in the rain, convened a “Citizen Task Force on Real Estate Hell,” and rolled out practical, mobility-focused pledges such as installing elevators in high-elevation areas like Oksu-dong in Seongdong District and improving the gear mechanisms on Seoul’s public bike system, Ddareungi.
A political insider said the opposition’s push for debate-driven scrutiny has collided with the ruling camp’s emphasis on risk management. As a result, this by-election and the local elections are increasingly likely to be defined by a struggle over whether debates will take place rather than by substantive policy contests.
