18-Year-Old Candidate for Muan County Council Joins Japanese Idol Stage

Oh Sin-hang, who ran as the youngest candidate in the country at just 18 years old four years ago in the Muan County council election in Jeollanam-do, is attracting attention by pursuing a new dream on the international stage through Japan’s largest idol survival audition program.

According to K-pop industry sources on the 16th, Oh Sin-hang finished in fourth place in the final live broadcast of the recently concluded Japanese audition program “Produce 101 Japan: New World,” securing his spot as one of the debut members of the 12-member new boy group KO1KEYZ. Along with Park Si-young, a Korean member who placed third, he became the first Korean members in the history of the program and an idol with a uniquely distinctive background.

Oh Sin-hang’s journey to find this new platform for growth was relatively short but dramatic. In June 2022, while studying at Mokpo University’s Department of Fashion Medicine, he ran as an independent candidate in constituency Na of Muan County during the 8th National Simultaneous Local Elections. At that time, 18 years old, he promised to represent the voices of youth dreaming of happiness by advocating for the distribution of youth culture vouchers and providing 1 million won in stock investment funds for young people. Notably, his father, Oh Won-ok, who had entered politics at the age of 26, also ran in the same constituency, setting a record for a “father-son tandem campaign,” but both failed to win.

After losing the election, Oh Sin-hang moved to Japan and, after 11 weeks of intense competition, succeeded in winning over global fans’ support. In the final voting of “Produce 101 Japan: New World,” Oh Sin-hang received overwhelming votes and finished in fourth place.

KO1KEYZ, the group Oh Sin-hang will join, is scheduled to make its debut simultaneously in South Korea and Japan this fall. Ahead of that, Oh Sin-hang will appear at the international K-pop festival “KCON LA 2026” in August to launch his full-scale global activities, with fan meetings planned in both South Korea and Japan.