Backed by Seoul voters, Oh set to challenge Land Ministry on housing
Seoul, central government at odds over supply plans
Opposition to Yongsan 10,000-unit plan expected to grow louder
![Oh Se-hoon, the Seoul mayoral candidate, speaks at a press briefing near Hyochang Park Station in Seoul on Monday. Oh secured a historic fifth term as Seoul mayor through the June 3 local elections. [Yonhap]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/06/04/rcv.YNA.20260602.PYH2026060203990001300_P1.jpg)
"I will deliver on my promise to make Seoul a city of pride — one where quality of life improves at a truly rapid pace." (Oh Se-hoon, on his way into Seoul City Hall on Thursday morning, following his election victory)
Oh Se-hoon's victory in the June 3 local elections is expected to sharpen the power struggle between Seoul City Hall and the central government over housing supply in the capital. Oh defeated Democratic Party of Korea candidate Jeong Won-oh in a closely contested race, becoming the first Seoul mayor ever to win a fifth term.
His win is widely seen as a reflection of real estate sentiment within Seoul. Oh outperformed Jeong in 10 of the city's 25 districts, including the three Gangnam-area districts of Gangnam, Seocho and Songpa, the Han River belt districts of Yongsan, Dongjak, Gwangjin, Yeongdeungpo and Gangdong, as well as Jung-gu and Yangcheon-gu.
The result is also seen as a check on the Lee Jae Myung administration, and Oh is expected to push back more forcefully on housing supply plans that have already put him in conflict with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. He said the missing rebar scandal at the GTX-A Samsung Station — a dispute in which Seoul and the Land Ministry have traded blame — had "been distorted in the context of the election campaign," and pledged to make it a top priority.
Control over Yongsan international business district's 10,000 units back to square one
"Expand supply with 10,000 units at the Yongsan International Business District" (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport)
VS
"Maximum 8,000 units, accounting for schools and per-capita green space" (Seoul Metropolitan Government)
According to a government official on Thursday, the sharpest point of conflict between Seoul City Hall and the Land Ministry is the scale of housing to be built at the Yongsan International Business District development. Seoul has laid out a vision for a business hub anchored by supertall office towers, while the Land Ministry has pushed back with a plan to build as many as 10,000 apartment units to stabilize housing supply.
Seoul City Hall considers 6,000 units the appropriate figure. Oh had already objected when the Moon Jae-in administration announced a plan for 8,000 units in Yongsan in 2021, saying it was "unreasonable to cram that many homes in," and he continued to oppose the 10,000-unit proposal while serving as mayor before the election.
![Funeral wreaths placed in protest against the government's housing supply plan stand in front of the Yongsan International Business District site in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. [Yonhap]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/06/04/rcv.YNA.20260205.PYH2026020511020001300_P1.jpg)
Industry insiders say the Land Ministry will find it difficult to push through the 10,000-unit plan now that Seoul voters have handed Oh a fresh mandate, effectively signaling where public sentiment lies.
Ko Jun-seok, a professor at Yonsei University's Sangnam School of Management, said the fallout would be severe if the Land Ministry moved to override local government permitting authority to advance the Yongsan International Business District development. "The chances of things going the way Seoul City Hall wants now look quite high," he said.
Conflict rooted in Sewoon district dispute raises fears of political standoff
The dispute over high-rise development around the Sewoon Sangga complex is also expected to resurface. After Seoul City Hall lifted height restrictions to allow buildings of up to roughly 142 meters in Sewoon District 4, the Cultural Heritage Administration and the Land Ministry objected, arguing that tall buildings near Jongmyo Shrine — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — would damage the historic skyline.
When the Land Ministry subsequently unveiled its Jan. 29 supply package, which included a plan to build 6,800 housing units at Taereung Country Club, Seoul City Hall pushed back. It noted that roughly 13 percent of the Taereung CC site overlaps with a protected buffer zone for Joseon royal tombs, and said the stance of the Cultural Heritage Administration and the Land Ministry was contradictory, given that they had blocked the Sewoon Sangga development on heritage preservation grounds.
Oh was pointed in his criticism of the Jan. 29 package at the time. "The Cultural Heritage Administration opposes development at the Sewoon district, which is clearly separated from the protected zone, yet raises no objection to Taereung CC, which falls squarely within the area affected by the World Heritage site," he said. "The behavior of the president and the government is nothing short of contradictory and a double standard."
As the rift between the two sides deepens, concerns are growing that the competition for control over housing supply between the Land Ministry and Seoul City Hall could devolve into a politically charged standoff.
An anonymous Land Ministry official said the Sewoon Sangga and Taereung CC cases were "in effect politically charged clashes, even if the Cultural Heritage Administration is nominally out front." The official added that a battle over the justification for housing supply decisions would likely continue.
Professor Ko said the government and Seoul City Hall needed to speak with one voice to stabilize the market. "At the end of the conflict, there is only supply disruption and rising prices," he added.
![‘신속착공’ 오세훈 당선…한강벨트 재건축·재개발 속도내나 [부동산360]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/06/04/rcv.YNA.20260602.PYH2026060220400001301_T1.jpg)
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