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The results of the 2026 Kyung Hee University (KHU) Seoul Campus Election were announced on November 26 in Orbis Hall room 111. The election included votes for the General Student Association (GSA), college student associations (CSA), departmental student associations (DSA), and various committees.

KHU:EST Elected as the 58th Seoul Campus GSA 

KHU:EST's Jeong Jong-won and Son Ye-ji sharing their remarks

In the GSA election, KHU:EST was elected as the 58th Seoul Campus GSA, receiving 4,343 votes (52.52%). The opposing candidate group, KnowHow, received 3,311 votes (40.04%).

According to the KHU Seoul Campus Election Rule (ER), vote counting becomes possible once voter turnout reaches 50%. This year, the threshold was met on the second day of voting, November 25 at 18:00, when turnout reached 53.39%. The final turnout at the time of counting was 62.72%. This is in contrast with the 2025 GSA by-election, which failed to reach the minimum quorum until the final deadline, ultimately recording a turnout of 50.68%. As the 2026 GSA election was a competitive race, it reflected heightened student interest in campus governance.

KHU:EST’s President-elect Jeong Jong-won stated, “I will do my best to lead the Seoul Campus well.” Vice President-elect Son Ye-ji added, “Thank you to all KHU students for trusting and voting for us, and we also appreciate the KnowHow headquarters for the fair competition.” Son continued, noting the skepticism among students toward the current student governance: “We take this seriously and will work to make ‘Our Kyung Hee’ the ‘Best Kyung Hee.’”

KHU:EST Faces Objections over Electoral Misconduct

Students waiting for the delayed vote counting

However, there were claims that the election was not conducted fairly.  The vote counting, which was originally scheduled for 19:00 on November 26, was delayed by one hour due to objections over alleged electoral misconduct. A student from the School of Dance reported that a vote had already been cast under their name, even though they had not voted. After investigations, it was revealed that a KHU:EST campaign staff member  had cast 13 proxy votes. 

On November 27, the Central Election Management Committee stated that they will conduct additional investigations into the proxy voting and take actions under the ER and GSA Bylaws. The Committee added, “We will ensure the election proceeds democratically.”

KHU:EST released a statement on Instagram noting, “We want to clarify that this was an individual action of an election campaign member. There were no orders from the headquarters.” They added, “However, we acknowledge the seriousness of this incident and sincerely apologize.”

KnowHow also declared their opinion, stating, “We express strong concern about treating this matter merely as an ‘individual action.’” They argued that the Central Election Management Committee pushed ahead with vote counting despite being aware of the proxy voting. They stated, “We strongly call for the invalidation of the 58th GSA election and for disciplinary action to all related people.”

CSA and DSA Election Outcomes

Elected candidates from the Dept. of Korean Pharmacy sharing their remarks

At the college level, elections failed to proceed in the College of Politics & Economics, the School of Management, and the College of Human Ecology, all of which will hold by-elections at a later date.

Most other colleges successfully elected their representatives, with turnout and approval rates remaining consistently high across campus. The College of Nursing Science’s VITA received 92.70%, while the School of Dance’s Ondam followed with 90.07%. The College of Humanities elected On with 88.07%, and the College of Fine Arts’ BR!TT also won with 90.48%.

In the College of Music, Tempo was elected with 75.72%, and the College of Sciences’ Eroom received 89.78%. The School of Global Eminence elected Ssiat with 90.91%. Among the professional colleges, the College of Dentistry’s Dent-In recorded one of the highest approval rates at 95.41%, while the College of Korean Medicine’s Uju also secured a strong result with 94.9%.

The College of Human Ecology election was conducted competitively. With a turnout of 66.62%, Liv-on was elected with 61.20%, while Hadam received 36.81%.

The most competitive race in this election took place in the College of Pharmacy. The college recorded a voter turnout of 85.50%, the highest among all units. Phealing was elected with 61.67%, while YakSok received 35.02%. 

Two of the three DSAs under the College of Pharmacy were also contested, highlighting the college as a central hub of student electoral activity. In the Dept. of Pharmacy, PHASTEL received 51.18% while PhamPhlet earned 46.92%. In the Dept. of Pharmaceutical Sciences, YakSol received 65.05% against Epilogue’s 34.95%. Although the Dept. of Korean Pharmacy was not contested, it recorded a high turnout of 79.55% and 91.43% approval for Gaehwa.

The 2026 Seoul Campus Election demonstrated increased student engagement compared to previous years, with competitive races across student associations. While several colleges and departments require by-elections, the overall election showed a renewed interest in student governance. However, allegations of proxy voting within the GSA election raised concerns about the integrity of electoral procedures, prompting calls for additional investigation and accountability. Attention will center on how the election outcomes will be settled amid electoral misconduct.