Oh Se-hoon

By Lee Ji-eun

Former Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon left to study in London for at least half a year Sunday, and to distance himself from politics as the presidential election nears, said an aide Monday.

“Oh will stay there for at least six months with his family,” the aide said. “He is intentionally avoiding the sensitive time leading up to the presidential election in December.”

The ex-mayor will focus on major cities around the world to look at their efforts to create jobs and help promote economic growth as a fellow at the Graduate School of Social Science and Public Policy at King’s College London, said the aide.

Oh, who is said to be among the presidential hopefuls for 2016, resigned as Seoul mayor last year, although he had two and a half years remaining in his second four-year term.

At the time, the conservative mayor made an aborted attempt to block a free school lunch program launched by the city council controlled by the liberal opposition in the capital’s first-ever referendum in August.