Exit polls put Jung Geun-sik on course for second term as Seoul education chief
2026.06.04 01:07
Academic-turned administrator promises to continue reforms, increased support for students from migrant-backgrounds
| Liberal canddiate Jung Geun-sik (second from right) and his supporters cheer after learning of the exit poll results at his campaign office, in Jongno-gu, Seoul, Wednesday. (Jung Geun-sik's campagin office) |
Incumbent Seoul Superintendent Jung Geun-sik was projected to secure a second term Wednesday, leading the city’s education chief race as vote counting continued.
“I don’t think this is my victory. Rather, it was possible because Seoul citizens understood and trusted the major policies of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education over the past year and a half,” Jung said after learning of the exit poll results Wednesday.
“I believe I will have to build an integrated Seoul education curriculum that incorporates different opinions,” he added. “If I started with a sense of mission a year and a half ago, today I feel more responsibility than mission.”
The liberal candidate led Seoul’s education superintendent race in exit polls, putting him on course for a second term as head of the city’s education office. As of press time, 0.5 percent of ballots in Seoul had been counted, with Jung securing 35.8 percent of the vote.
Jung faced seven opponents, including Cho Chun-hyuk and Yoon Ho-sang, in the country's most crowded education chief race.
From sociologist to education chief
Jung's career has straddled academia, education and human rights, a background that has developed his image as a progressive education figure rather than a conventional administrator.
Born in 1957 in Iksan, North Jeolla Province, Jung studied sociology at Seoul National University.
As a student, he spent time teaching women and workers who could not afford formal education, an experience he has said led him to think more deeply about inequality and Korea’s education system.
He began his academic career in 1985 as a professor at Chonnam National University before joining Seoul National University in 2003.
Jung later took on a series of public roles tied to historical justice and human rights. In 2005, he served as a member of the Presidential Committee for the Inspection of Collaborations for Japanese Imperialism. From 2009 to 2012, he headed the Korea Democracy Research Center, and in 2011, he served as co-chair of the committee that drafted Gwangju’s human rights charter.
In 2020, Jung was appointed chair of the second Truth and Reconciliation Commission. During his tenure, the commission investigated Seongam Academy, a juvenile detention facility established in 1942 during Japanese colonial rule and operated for about four decades. The commission later recognized the case as involving violations of children’s rights.
Jung entered the Seoul education superintendent’s office after winning a by-election in 2024. His first term, which lasted about a year and a half, centered on long-term education reform, including changes to the Suneung college entrance exam, free kindergarten education and support for students from migrant backgrounds.
Jung promises continuity for second term
On the campaign trail, Jung promised to continue the education reforms he had spearheaded during his first term.
In his speech after winning the progressive bloc’s candidate selection process on April 24, Jung pledged to strengthen students’ basic academic skills, support students’ mental health, implement future-oriented education and expand free education.
Jung said he would open 14 additional Seoul Learning Diagnosis and Growth Centers, which evaluate students’ learning levels and provide customized support to those struggling academically. Seoul currently operates 11 such centers.
He also said he would operate eight emotional and psychological treatment centers, provide 24-hour online counseling and establish “Mind Recovery Schools,” specialized institutions for students in need of professional psychological support.
Jung also said he would prevent the “outsourcing of learning,” in which artificial intelligence replaces students’ thinking processes. While using AI as an educational tool, he pledged to preserve analog learning practices, including reading printed books, long-form writing and in-person discussions.
On student assessment, Jung said he would push for both school grades and the Suneung to be converted to a five-tier absolute grading system.
Jung also pledged to make education free for all children aged 3 to 5 during his term, provide public transportation subsidies for all elementary, middle and high school students and fully cover the costs of field trips and other off-campus learning activities.
For teachers, Jung pledged stronger protections against malicious complaints from parents and others.
Jung also shared with The Korea Herald his pledges for students from migrant backgrounds. His pledges include operating trilingual schools using Korean, English and Mandarin in districts with large Chinese-background student populations.
Jung also pledged to open a second Seoul Migrant-Background Student Support Center in northern Seoul, introduce translation and interpretation services, develop Korean-language textbooks tailored to different parts of Seoul, provide additional support for schools in areas with large migrant-background populations and expand Korean preparatory schools.
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