Hong Jun-pyo, Yoon Hee-sook's Candidacy Sparks "When the Mullet Jumps, the Mudskipper Does Too" Comment, Leading to Removal from Group Chat

Hong Jun-pyo, a member of the People Power Party, is giving a lecture on the theme "The Path to a Normal Country" at the first-term lawmakers' meeting "Myeongbulheojeon Conservative" held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 30th of last month. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Choyoung] On the 1st, Hong Joon-pyo, a member of the People Power Party, reportedly left a message saying "When the mullet jumps, the mudfish also jumps" in response to news that Yoon Hee-sook, a first-term lawmaker from the same party, would run for president.

On the 24th of last month, when his reinstatement to the People Power Party was decided, Hong was present in a group chat room. It was a place where party lawmakers gathered, and Hong entered the group chat room that morning at the invitation of a lawmaker.

Later, an article was shared in the chat room stating that Yoon was planning to declare her presidential candidacy. In response, Hong posted the message "When the mullet jumps, the mudfish also jumps." Upon seeing this, lawmaker Kim Woong reportedly asked a question along the lines of "Who is the mullet and who is the mudfish?"

After Hong immediately deleted the message and left the chat room, Kim reportedly wrote, "If a junior is running, you should at least encourage them..."

Among the lawmakers, there was talk that Hong might have mistaken the situation for a one-on-one conversation with the lawmaker who invited him. Later, the lawmaker who invited Hong to the People Power Party lawmakers' chat room posted a clarification stating that the "mudfish" referred to Park Yong-jin, a member of the Democratic Party.

Earlier, Yoon said in an interview with a media outlet that day, "I have decided to declare my presidential candidacy tomorrow," adding, "The location will be the National Assembly press conference room."

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