DP picks ex-presidential AI chief, spokesperson as candidates in June by-...

ruling party-candidate nominations

DP picks ex-presidential AI chief, spokesperson as candidates in June by-elections

SEOUL, April 30 (Yonhap) -- The ruling Democratic Party (DP) on Thursday nominated two former senior presidential officials as candidates in the upcoming parliamentary by-elections to be held in conjunction with the local elections.

Ha Jung-woo, former presidential secretary for artificial intelligence (AI) policy and future planning, will run for a parliamentary seat in the Buk-A constituency in Busan in the by-election on June 3.

"We viewed him as the best candidate to succeed the constituency of former lawmaker Chun Jae-soo and serve as the driving force that will lead the election to victory as a native of Busan who attended elementary, middle and high school in Buk Ward," Rep. Kang Jun-hyeon, the party's senior spokesperson, told a press briefing.

It will be one of the closely watched constituencies in the elections, with the competition expected to be a three-way race between Ha and Han Dong-hoon, former head of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), who is now an independent, as well as a PPP candidate, possibly former Veterans Minister Park Min-shik.

President Lee Jae Myung has endearingly referred to Ha as "Ha-GPT," nicknamed after ChatGPT, a popular generative AI service developed by OpenAI.

"(If elected) we expect him to elevate the level of AI-related legislation at the National Assembly," he added.

The DP also nominated former presidential spokesperson Jeon Eun-soo to run for the Asan constituency in South Chungcheong Province.

Fourteen parliamentary seats will be up for grabs in the parliamentary by-elections to be held alongside the quadrennial local elections, potentially serving as the first major bellwether of public support for the Lee administration since its launch in June last year.

This photo shows Ha Jung-woo (L), former presidential secretary for artificial intelligence policy and future planning, and former presidential spokesperson Jeon Eun-soo (R) posing for a photo at a recruitment ceremony at the National Assembly in Seoul on April 29, 2026. (Yonhap)