청 2nd New Deal Strategy Meeting, Policy Contest of Ruling and Opposition Party Presidential Hopefuls

Lee Jae-myung, Kim Kyung-soo, and Won Hee-ryong Introduce Regional New Deal Cases Before President Moon: "Regional Balanced New Deal as a Pillar of the Korean New Deal"

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Jeong-min] At the '2nd Korean New Deal Strategy Meeting' held at the Blue House on the 13th, the highlight was the 'Regional New Deal' blueprint competition among potential presidential candidates from both ruling and opposition parties. Participants included Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, and Kim Kyung-soo, Governor of Gyeongnam Province, both considered potential candidates from the ruling party, as well as Won Hee-ryong, Governor of Jeju Province, a presidential candidate from the opposition.

President Moon Jae-in invited governors from all 17 cities and provinces nationwide to the Blue House to emphasize the importance of balanced regional development and provided an opportunity for six metropolitan governors to introduce their regional New Deal cases. President Moon said, "I am very pleased to see the governors who are leading the efforts to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis on the front lines all in one place."

What is interesting is that the six metropolitan governors given the opportunity included Lee, Kim, and Won. It was a stage where presidential candidates dreaming of becoming the new leader of the Blue House competed in front of President Moon with their visions for the future.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

First, Governor Lee introduced the regional New Deal project under the theme "Bringing Data to the People." He proposed building a public data system with citizen participation in Gyeonggi Province to create a virtuous cycle where residents benefit from the activation of the data economy.

Governor Kim unveiled his blueprint under the theme "Southeast Mega City and Region-Led New Deal." He emphasized the necessity of the New Deal for balanced regional development and presented a solution combining the Southeast Mega City with the Smart Green New Deal as the direction for progress.

Governor Won revealed his vision under the meaningful theme "Jeju's Future is Korea's Future." Jeju Province plans to actively foster the renewable energy industry by linking the vision of clean and coexistence-oriented Jeju with the New Deal.

The reason this event deserves attention is that it provided presidential candidates, who are somewhat removed from Yeouido politics, an opportunity to showcase their strengths to the public based on policy. Among those aspiring to the next presidential election, those active on the Yeouido political stage generally have a broader scope of political activities.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the other hand, metropolitan governors such as those of Gyeonggi, Gyeongnam, and Jeju often convey political messages through indirect channels like social networking services (SNS). This means their opportunities to demonstrate political capabilities are limited.

This event, held at the Blue House and broadcast live on TV nationwide, was a meaningful occasion for metropolitan governors aspiring to the presidency. The Blue House plans to use this opportunity to further strengthen cooperation between the government and local governments.

Im Se-eun, Deputy Spokesperson of the Blue House, said, "The regional balanced New Deal, which will play a key role in the Korean New Deal, will serve as an opportunity to explore strategies to settle it according to the characteristics of each region."

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