Seoul mayor says he will resign immediately

SEOUL–Seoul mayor Oh Se-Hoon said Friday he would resign immediately, holding himself responsible for a failed referendum on free school meals.

“I’ll resign immediately in order to minimize political controversy and administrative vacuum,” Oh said at a press conference broadcast live across the country.

His resignation came after voters this week rejected his attempt to take away free meals away from half of schoolchildren.

The referendum was seen as a test of voter sentiment ahead of parliamentary elections in next April and a presidential vote in December 2012.

But it was declared invalid after voter turnout failed to reach a one-third minimum as more than two thirds of voters remained indifferent or boycotted the referendum called by the mayor, who is from the ruling conservative Grand National Party (GNP).

Under election law, Oh’s departure will lead to a by-election on October 26 to elect a successor to serve the remainder of his term in office. He has served 14 months out of his four-year term after his re-election last year.

The support base of President Lee Myung-Bak and his GNP has been seriously eroded by economic woes and a perceived widening gap between the rich and the poor, and between large companies and small and medium-sized enterprises.

The liberal opposition Democratic Party argues the ruling party has failed to prioritize social welfare as the country’s wealth gap has grown.

The ruling party suffered demoralizing defeats in local elections in June last year and by-elections in April. Lee’s five-year term ends in early 2013 and the constitution limits presidents to one term only.

In Seoul, the main opposition Democratic Party had campaigned for a referendum boycott, accusing the mayor of squandering taxpayers’ money on the city’s beautification projects while penny-pinching on lunch for children.