From YS to Hong Joon-pyo: Ruling Party Presidential Candidates' 'Political Norms' and Differentiation from the President

Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung's Facebook Message, Signal of Differentiation from President Moon?... Ruling Party Alert Amid Growing Controversy, Blue House Remains Tight-Lipped

[Asia Economy reporters Ryu Jeong-min and Kang Na-hum] "I can clearly see the resentment and sense of betrayal toward the Moon Jae-in administration, the Democratic Party, and even the nation and community spreading like wildfire." The reason why the post by Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province (photo), on Facebook on the 6th is attracting attention in political circles is not unrelated to the 'political grammar' of past presidential elections.

From Kim Young-sam (YS), the Democratic Liberal Party's presidential candidate in 1992, to Hong Joon-pyo, the Liberty Korea Party's presidential candidate in 2017, the ruling party's prominent presidential candidates have used differentiation strategies from the sitting president in their campaigns. Except for Roh Moo-hyun, the Democratic Party's presidential candidate in 2002, most ruling party candidates expanded their support base based on tense relations with the president. This is related to the mechanics of presidential elections.

Voters generally desire political leaders with a 'different color' from the existing government. If a candidate fails to present differentiated appeal in terms of policy and political style, there are limits to their ability to expand support. The problem is that differentiation strategies can ignite discord within the ruling party. In the 1997 presidential election, the issue of burning YS dolls caused the relationship between the president and the ruling party candidate (Lee Hoi-chang) to rapidly freeze.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The reason the political world is paying attention to Governor Lee's critical message, which even used the word 'betrayal' regarding the Moon Jae-in administration's emergency disaster relief fund policy, is also because of this. If this is a differentiation strategy launched one year and six months before the presidential election, it could become a variable that affects not only the political landscape of the ruling party but also the blueprint of state affairs at the Blue House.

For now, Governor Lee is focusing on damage control regarding the controversy. In an additional post on Facebook, he stated, "As a member of the government and a party member, I will faithfully follow the final decisions of the government and ruling party." He claimed that his message came from 'sincere intentions' and expressed the view that it should not be exploited for political division.

However, political circles view Governor Lee's moves as part of a competition for clarity. It is interpreted as targeting the Democratic Party's traditional progressive supporters. A Democratic Party lawmaker analyzed, "Looking at a series of (Lee's) remarks related to the disaster relief fund, it is a message aimed at a significant number of Democratic Party supporters who desire universal welfare."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Blue House is being cautious with its words. There is an underlying concern that reacting sensitively could escalate the controversy. A Blue House official said, "It does not seem appropriate for the Blue House to make a statement on this issue."

This controversy is expected to reach a turning point at the Blue House senior secretaries and aides meeting presided over by President Moon Jae-in on the 7th. President Moon is scheduled to explain the reasons why the second emergency disaster relief fund must be selectively distributed at this meeting.

The ruling party is showing concern about the spread of the controversy. Kim Jong-min, a Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said in an interview with tbs radio's 'Kim Eo-jun's News Factory' on the 7th, "While there may be different claims, if this path is not taken, other paths are wrong. We must never fall into such disputes," expressing caution.

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