Lee Jae-myung: "In the main primary, let's demonstrate the one-team spirit without wounds" Lee Nak-yeon, postponing the primary: "Hope the party leadership will decide" (Comprehensive)

[Asia Economy Reporters Koo Chae-eun, Jeon Jin-young] Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province and a leading presidential candidate from the ruling party who passed the preliminary primary cut-off, stated on the 11th regarding the main primary, "We will preserve and nurture each other's capabilities without getting hurt, with a one-team spirit." The candidates confirmed to advance to the 20th presidential election main primary, announced that day, include Lee Jae-myung, Chu Mi-ae, Chung Sye-kyun, Lee Nak-yeon, Park Yong-jin, and Kim Du-kwan (in order of ballot number).

Right after passing the cut-off, Lee said in a back briefing, "Even though it was a preliminary primary, I was nervous and trembling. I thank the party members and the public for passing me, and I will work harder to be true to Lee Jae-myung." When asked about the excitement of the main primary, he said, "I think this primary is a process of positioning, not a national competition, and it is a process of preserving and nurturing each other's capabilities with a one-team spirit," adding, "It is different from the competition with other candidates after confirmation."

Former Democratic Party leader Lee also ignited talks about unification with former Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun and postponement of the primary. Lee said, "Prime Minister Chung and I were the first and second prime ministers of the Moon administration," adding, "We have a special responsibility to establish the 4th Democratic government. We will cooperate together." Regarding the postponement of the primary, he said, "Level 4 is a strong quarantine measure that we have never experienced for one and a half years, and I hope the leadership will make a responsible decision."

Former Minister of Justice Chu also supported the postponement of the primary. He said, "In the current situation where gatherings of two or more people are prohibited, I do think it would be good to have an opportunity to properly listen to public opinion," adding, "I will follow whatever the party decides." Regarding Lee's remark that the verification of former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl should be "limited to the candidate himself," Chu drew a line, saying, "It is not simply about asking about family background but about various factions and cases supervised when he was an active prosecutor and Prosecutor General."

Former Prime Minister Chung responded to the possibility of unification mentioned during the primary by asking, "Am I supposed to give up?" and said, "Rep. Lee Kwang-jae, who unified with me, has agreed to take the position of election campaign committee chairman. There are currently no other unification discussions," drawing a line. Regarding his determination for the main primary, Chung emphasized, "I want to be a candidate trusted by the people through my best efforts. I want to become a president who creates jobs and an economic president who cooks rice."

Rep. Park said, "When I declared my candidacy two months ago, no one was confident that Park Yong-jin would pass the primary," adding, "I am really happy to have passed. Park Yong-jin's political revolution is just beginning." When asked if his strategy would be the same in the main primary after criticizing Lee a lot in the preliminary primary, Park replied, "In the main primary, instead of verifying other candidates' policies, I will explain Park Yong-jin's pledges, policies, and vision more."

Rep. Kim said, "Since our party has a constituency in the most difficult Yeongnam region, the role of Yeongnam is very important for winning the presidential election. With such concerns and worries, I was able to smoothly pass the primary." Regarding the renewed calls for postponing the primary due to the resurgence of COVID-19, he said, "Isn't this escalated situation a considerable reason? I think the party leadership will have concerns."

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