“Unified Front to Propel Daejeon Forward”,
On the morning of the 6th, candidates Jang Jong-tae and Jang Cheol-min held a press conference in the press room of the Daejeon City Council to announce their policy alliance. This alliance comes as Jang Cheol-min, who is competing in the runoff for the Democratic Party’s Daejeon mayoral candidacy against Heo Tae-jeong, joins forces with Jang Jong-tae, who was eliminated in the primary.
Candidate Jang stated, “With the united strength of a competent unified front, we will definitely achieve a leap forward for Daejeon.” Jang Jong-tae emphasized, “The two of us will take on the challenge of fulfilling the Lee Jae-myung administration’s agenda of administrative integration in the Chungcheong region and create a future for Daejeon by forming a ‘one team’.”
Jang Cheol-min pledged to fully adopt Jang Jong-tae’s ‘six major transformations’ policy. Their joint promises include introducing a Youth Chief system in Daejeon’s administration, establishing a Youth Committee directly under the mayor, and implementing city-wide AI assistants and AI healthcare services for citizens.
He expressed his intent to break free from the stagnant status quo of Daejeon, aiming to leap forward with bigger dreams and broader visions. “If the runoff becomes a contest between past and future, I believe the citizens of Daejeon will choose the future,” he said.
Regarding the ‘runoff debate’ he proposed to candidate Heo, Jang expressed regret over the limited time in previous TV debates, which constrained his ability to fully present his policy vision. He stated his willingness to accommodate any conditions Heo suggests for the debate.
Jang highlighted his main strength as having the potential to regain Daejeon’s energy by choosing fresh and dynamic leadership instead of repeated frustration.
Finally, he stressed that integration must be decided by the citizens’ will and outlined a clear roadmap to complete integration in time for the general elections, promising to work hard for a resident vote in the latter half of the next year, shortening his mayoral term if residents decide in favor.