South Korea extends a special law until 2030 to support Pyeongtaek, host of the largest U.S. military base, Camp Humphreys, citing ongoing development projects and base relocations.
Election results in South Korea showed discrepancies with pre-election polls, particularly in key battlegrounds like Seoul and Gyeongnam. The "shy conservative" vote was reportedly undercounted, with ARS-based polls proving more accurate than phone interviews, suggesting a psychological impact from political framing.
Yoo Ui-dong of the People Power Party won the Pyeongtaek-eul by-election, marking his return to the National Assembly after a two-year hiatus following his defeat in the general election. He emphasized his local roots in Pyeongtaek, a city where he has lived his entire life, and secured victory against prominent rivals.
Yu Eui-dong, re-elected as a National Assembly member for Pyeongtaek, expressed gratitude to citizens and pledged to focus on qualitative growth for the city while acting as a check on the ruling party. He aims to make Pyeongtaek a central city in South Korea.
Exit polls for the Pyeongtaek B parliamentary by-election showed conflicting results, with major broadcasters placing Cho Kuk ahead and JTBC predicting Kim Yong-nam's victory. Candidates' camps expressed mixed reactions and urged supporters to await final results.
Exit polls for South Korea's National Assembly by-elections show extremely close contests in Busan Buk-gap and Pyeongtaek-eul. In Busan, the Democratic Party's Ha Jeong-woo is narrowly ahead of independent Han Dong-hoon. Pyeongtaek-eul features a three-way race between Cho Kuk of the Cho Kuk Innovation Party, Yoo Eui-dong of the People Power Party, and Kim Yong-nam of the Democratic Party.
In Pyeongtaek-Eul, Jo Guk of the Jo Guk Innovation Party received 31.1% of the vote, followed by Yoo Eui-dong of the People Power Party at 30.6%, and Kim Yong-nam of the Democratic Party at 30.3%. In Busan Buk-gap, Ha Jeong-woo of the Democratic Party secured 42.6%, while Han Dong-hoon ran as an independent with 41.6%, and Park Min-sik of the People Power Party garnered 15.8%.
Five candidates in the Pyeongtaek National Assembly by-election are making a final push for votes on April 2nd, the last day of official campaigning. They are visiting various locations across the constituency, including commercial areas, industrial sites, and residential neighborhoods, to engage with voters.
A man in his 40s, identified as a YouTuber, was arrested in Pyeongtaek for assaulting election campaign workers and police officers during a campaign event for Jo Guk, a candidate for the National Assembly by-election. The suspect allegedly attacked a campaign staff member and then assaulted three police officers who intervened.
Tens of thousands of Samsung Electronics workers rallied at the company's Pyeongtaek campus to prepare for an 18-day strike next month over bonus disputes. The union demands Samsung scrap its performance bonus cap and redirect 15% of operating profit to workers. The timing coincides with an AI-driven chip shortage, where AI data centers consume an estimated 70% of high-end memory chips, and DRAM prices have skyrocketed since early 2025.
Thousands of Samsung Electronics workers protested Thursday at the company's chip complex in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, demanding higher bonuses and transparent compensation. The union, representing about 74,000 workers, rejected management's stock bonus proposal and called for removing caps on performance bonuses. The protest coincides with Samsung forecasting a record first-quarter operating profit of 57.2 trillion won, driven by AI-driven memory chip demand. The union has threatened an 18-day strike starting May 21, estimating it would cost the company over 1 trillion won per day.
