Kim Min-seok: "Bonus points for famous female candidates in Seoul mayoral race are strange"

Kim Min-seok, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending the 21st Democratic Party of Korea National Assembly Member-Elect Workshop held in Seoul last May. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-eun] Kim Min-seok, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea and head of the Seoul mayoral by-election planning team, argued on the 18th that giving additional points to famous female candidates in the Seoul mayoral by-election primary simply because they are women is unreasonable.

On the same day, on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' Kim said regarding the opinion that "a female candidate should be nominated for a position vacated due to a sexual scandal," "I believe that is ultimately a matter for the citizens' judgment," adding, "Whether it will help create a better Seoul is not a matter of gender but rather a matter of the candidate's awareness and actions."

Regarding the suggestion to grant additional points to female candidates, he said, "That issue is something to be handled by the central party's planning team, but it should be done within the framework of the rules that have existed so far," and added, "So far, the emphasis of female additional points has been mainly on citizen candidates. Wouldn't it be strange to give additional points to famous women who are stronger than male candidates anywhere?"

Kim said, "I do not see this election as a competition against the opposing party," and added, "Since the citizens' standards have risen, I believe we just need to focus on how to meet those standards."

He also said, "I have never thought the Seoul election was easy," adding, "Seoul elections are always difficult, public opinion in Seoul is always tough and very tense, and I believe it is an election where even a slight negligence or mistake leads to defeat."

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