Although Real Estate Had Higher Search Volume... 'Jo Guk' Used More in Election Campaigns

Three Major Keywords Expected at D-100: Jojuk, Real Estate, North Korea
Although Real Estate Had Higher Search Volume Overall, Jojuk and North Korea Surged at Specific Times

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The three major keywords for the April 15 general election, 100 days before the election, were identified as 'Jo Guk,' 'real estate,' and 'North Korea.' (See our January 2 issue) These keywords symbolized the administration's morality, economic policy, and security, respectively. After the COVID-19 issue swept through, we revisited how much attention these keywords attracted.

According to Naver Data Lab on the 13th, from January 2 to this month’s 12th, the search volume for the keyword 'real estate' on mobile and PC was 5.8, more than twice as high compared to Jo Guk (1.34) and North Korea (2.67). Data Lab aggregates the number of times the search term was queried daily, weekly, and monthly on Naver, setting the highest search volume during the period to 100.

In the midst of the COVID-19 political situation, the real estate issue rather overshadowed political issues like Jo Guk and North Korea. The real estate keyword fluctuated between 5 and 6 throughout the period, while Jo Guk and North Korea keywords varied depending on the period. Notably, on January 14, when President Moon Jae-in held a New Year's press conference and said, "I feel indebted to former Minister of Justice Jo Guk," the search volume for 'Jo Guk' soared to 15.94, ten times the average. Also, on January 29, when North Korea closed its borders due to COVID-19 and the first trial preparation date for former Minister Jo overlapped, Jo Guk (28.02) and North Korea (24.46) search volumes surpassed real estate (6.09).

Additionally, on March 2, 9, and 21, when North Korea launched projectiles, the search volume for North Korea jumped to 100, 13.09, and 7.21 respectively, and on March 31, when U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, "I hope to sit down with North Korea," the search volume briefly rose to 58.31. However, aside from these instances, real estate generally recorded higher average search volumes.

According to 'Google Trends,' which uses Google's big data to investigate search volumes within South Korea over the past 90 days, the average interest level for real estate was the highest at 68. This was followed by North Korea (23) and Jo Guk (7). Unlike Naver Data Lab, Google searches showed real estate consistently ranking first over the past 90 days. Related search terms included 'Jo Guk white paper,' 'real estate official price notifier,' and 'COVID-19 North Korea.'

However, the keyword that appeared most frequently in actual election campaigns was not real estate or North Korea but Jo Guk. The ruling coalition often mentioned 'Protect Jo Guk,' while opposition parties frequently used the keyword 'Save Jo Guk' to criticize him. Hwang Hee-seok, former Ministry of Justice Human Rights Bureau chief and proportional representative candidate for the Open Democratic Party, attracted ruling party supporters by calling the Jo Guk incident a "prosecutorial coup." Kim Jong-in, the Future United Party’s general election committee chairman, actively used the Jo Guk issue, saying, "What will you save, Jo Guk or the South Korean economy?" and "A normal president would not appoint Minister Jo Guk." Kim Jeong-hwa, co-representative of the Minsheng Party, also raised her voice, saying, "Voting for the ruling party in this election is a vote to resurrect Jo Guk."

The real estate issue appears to be limited to certain constituencies such as Gangnam in Seoul. Lee Nak-yeon, co-chairman of the Democratic Party’s joint election committee, hinted at easing comprehensive real estate taxes for long-term homeowners with one household and one house during election campaigns in Gangnam and Seocho. Shim Sang-jung, co-chairwoman of the Justice Party’s joint election committee, criticized this, saying, "It overturns the existing policy of strengthening property taxes in a rush to win the election."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.