Why it matters. It shows how South Korea's polarized politics filter into everyday cultural life, including which books citizens turn to after a contentious vote.
Background. South Korea held nationwide local elections on June 3, 2026, against the backdrop of a political crisis sparked when then-President Yoon Suk-yeol declared emergency martial law on December 3, 2024 — a move the National Assembly swiftly voted to reverse. Daegu, where two contested candidates won, is a historic base of the conservative People Power Party. Hankyoreh is a left-leaning newspaper, so the column reflects a progressive perspective on the results.
What to watch next. Trials tied to the December 2024 martial law episode, including that of newly elected Daegu mayor Choo Kyung-ho, will continue to shape Korea's political landscape.
A columnist turns to books after a divisive local election
Following South Korea’s June 3 local elections, a literary editor at the progressive daily Hankyoreh has published a reflective column recommending three new books for voters who feel disheartened by the outcome — arguing that reading and dialogue, rather than despair, are the best response to political disappointment.
Turnout was high, reaching a provisional 61 percent, which the writer reads as a sign of strong public appetite for political change. Yet several results unsettled her. She points to the election of figures tied to the country’s recent constitutional crisis, and to the direction she fears the capital, Seoul, may now take.
Why the results stung
The column singles out Choo Kyung-ho, a former floor leader of the conservative People Power Party, who won the mayoral race in Daegu — a southeastern city long regarded as a conservative stronghold. Choo is currently on trial, accused of obstructing the National Assembly’s vote to lift martial law during the so-called “December 3 emergency martial law” episode. It also notes the by-election win of Lee Jin-sook, who served as chair of the Korea Communications Commission under former President Yoon Suk-yeol, in Daegu’s Dalseong district.
For the writer, these outcomes — alongside the Seoul mayoral result — are a legitimate collective choice, but one that leaves her anxious about the road ahead.
Three books for the moment
Rather than dwell on frustration, the column offers a reading list of newly released titles:
- Why Policy Fails (Hankyoreh Publishing) — on why public policy matters, how policy-driven parties form, and why citizens should become active “policy actors” themselves.
- Youth Bankruptcy (Medici Media) — an examination of the economic precarity facing South Korea’s younger generation.
- Where Does the Far Right Come From? (East-Asia Publishing) — a study drawn from the United States that analyzes how far-right politics and culture take root, offered as a lens for understanding domestic equivalents.
The piece closes on a familiar refrain in Korean civic life — that “democratization is not a single, decisive match” — and suggests that those unhappy with the vote should talk more with neighbors who think differently about the country’s shared challenges and vision. One of the best ways to start such conversations, she writes, is simply to read a book and discuss it.
