"Joining the Military Is a Badge of Honor" Young Men’s Courtship Across Parties...The Overlooked 'Women in Their 20s'

After the April 7 By-Elections, Political Circles Go 'All In' to Woo Young Male Voters
"Gender-Equal Military Service," "Honoring Military Service Merit" Ruling Party's Struggle
"Young Male Voter Bloc Phenomenon Requires Delicate Approach," Opposition Also Pays Attention
Some Point Out '20s Female Voter' Issue Neglect
Experts Say "Young Male Voter Defection Very Prominent in This Election"

On the 3rd, Oh Se-hoon, then the People Power Party's Seoul mayoral candidate, was campaigning with young supporters. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] After the April 7 by-elections, both ruling and opposition parties have been vying to capture the votes of 'Idaenam' (male voters in their 20s), raising concerns that female voters in their 20s may be relatively neglected. While there is active engagement on military service issues that 20-something men respond sensitively to, such as the reinstatement of military service bonus points and the introduction of a gender-equal military service system, discussions are less vigorous in areas where women face difficulties. Experts analyze that the political sphere is reacting more strongly than usual because the 'consolidation phenomenon' of male voters in their 20s was prominent in this by-election.

The ruling party has shown the most active stance in trying to win over 'Idaenam' votes after the by-election. In the April 7 by-election, the Democratic Party experienced a painful defeat as the majority of male voters in their 20s turned their backs on them.

According to the National Election Commission, a staggering 72.5% of male voters in their 20s supported Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, while Park Young-sun, the Democratic Party candidate and former Minister of SMEs and Startups, received only 22.2% of the vote. This means that more than three times as many male voters in their 20s in Seoul supported the People Power Party candidate compared to the Democratic Party.

As a result, ruling party lawmakers are considering various policies to capture the 'Idaenam' vote. Proposals to improve military service, which men in their early to mid-20s respond to most sensitively, are being discussed.

Jeon Yong-gi, the youngest first-term Democratic Party lawmaker, wrote on his Facebook on the 15th, "We plan to discuss the reintroduction of military service bonus points," emphasizing, "If it cannot be reintroduced due to unconstitutionality, we should amend the constitution to ensure that discharged soldiers receive at least minimal compensation."

Park Yong-jin, Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker / Photo by Asia Economy DB

Park Yong-jin, a fellow party member who has declared his intention to run for the next presidential election, proposed the 'gender-equal military service system' on the 18th, which mandates basic military training for both men and women.

In a Facebook post, Park explained, "It is a system where the military is maintained mainly with volunteers, and all citizens, regardless of gender, are required to undergo about 40 to 100 days of basic military training," adding, "While maintaining conscription, the mandatory service period is drastically reduced to lessen career disruption for the younger generation and prevent social energy waste."

Meanwhile, on the 26th, Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Byung-gi sparked controversy by pledging to propose and pass a bill to treat military service members as 'national merit recipients.' He stated, "When we try to strengthen the treatment of discharged soldiers, some sarcastically ask, 'Is going to the military a privilege?' But going to the military is indeed a privilege," and expressed his determination for the bill's passage by saying, "It is a more precious and valuable privilege than any other."

In the opposition camp, the victory in this by-election was also attributed to 'Idaenam,' with analyses emphasizing the need to secure their votes.

Lee Jun-seok, former Supreme Council member of the United Future Party (now People Power Party), wrote on his Facebook on the 9th, "The Democratic Party underestimated the vote consolidation power of 2030 men and focused solely on feminist movements," claiming, "That is why this result came about."

He added, "Unless they stop the distorted gender division called gender equality, 20-something male votes will never go to the Democratic Party," and said, "They won't come even if you give them 100,000 won, a 40% subway fare discount, or 5GB of data."

Lee Jun-seok, former Supreme Council Member of the United Future Party (currently People Power Party) / Photo by Yonhap News

The People Power Party's youth research institute, 'Yojeumgeotdeul Research Institute,' recommended in its by-election evaluation analysis on the 23rd, "The so-called Idaenam unanimous vote phenomenon reflects gender issues as a representative conflict structure in Korean society," and advised, "To resolve this, a delicate analysis and approach are necessary."

Amid this situation, women in their 20s and 30s expressed difficulty in accepting this. They pointed out that they feel absurdly excluded from political discussions despite exercising an equal vote as 'Idaenam.'

A female office worker in her 20s living in Seoul, Ms. A, said, "The very idea of making women serve in the military to appease men in their 20s is absurd. Then why is there no mention of issues like the gender wage gap, dating violence, various sex crimes, or the suicide rate among women in their 20s?"

Another female office worker, Ms. B (29), questioned, "Aren't men and women voters with the same one vote? Why are there no lawmakers proposing legislation to win over the hearts of women in their 20s from either the ruling or opposition parties?" She criticized, "Isn't it just creating terms like Idaenam and Idaenyeo to promote gender division?"

Experts analyzed that the 'Idaenam courting' phenomenon by both parties is due to the political shock caused by the consolidation of male voters in their 20s during the by-election.

Political commentator Lee Jong-hoon explained, "In this Seoul mayoral election, the defection of 20-something male votes (from the Democratic Party) was so severe," adding, "From the ruling party's perspective, there is urgency to reverse this, so they are aggressively addressing issues that Idaenam are interested in."

He continued, "On the other hand, the People Power Party suddenly attracted 20-something voters who had previously turned away, so they need to keep holding onto them and respond to the ruling party," adding, "Therefore, both parties seem to be focusing on 20-something men for now. When the next presidential election approaches, Idaenyeo issues will naturally come to the forefront."

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