The Intensifying 'Myeong-Nak Battle'

April 4-5 Regional Tour Joint Speech
Lee Jae-myung and Lee Nak-yeon Engage in Full-Scale Vote Battle

[Asia Economy Reporters Oh Ju-yeon and Jeon Jin-young] The Democratic Party's presidential candidates are gearing up for intense competition ahead of their joint campaign speeches scheduled for June 4 and 5 in the Daejeon-Chungnam and Sejong-Chungbuk regions, respectively. The "Myeong-Nak Battle" between Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, who is solidifying his lead, and former party leader Lee Nak-yeon, who is making a last-ditch effort to overturn the race, is becoming increasingly fierce.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On June 2, former leader Lee Nak-yeon devoted most of his time on KBS radio to aggressively criticizing Governor Lee Jae-myung over the controversy surrounding his "pro bono legal defense." Lee Nak-yeon stated, "Since (the pro bono legal defense) is going to be an issue anyway, and if it could become a legal problem, it is better to explain and resolve it quickly." The Lee Nak-yeon campaign also issued two statements that morning, pointing out Governor Lee’s evasive responses during the previous day's debate.

Governor Lee’s camp immediately pushed back, calling the accusations "malicious slander" and "negative campaigning based on false information." Song Pyung-soo, spokesperson for Lee Jae-myung’s campaign, asserted, "There is nothing unusual about the candidate’s lawyer fee payments, and there has been no third-party payment," labeling the attacks as "low and illegal negative campaigning." Former Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun also joined in criticizing Governor Lee, saying, "I asked several times about the funding for Governor Lee’s basic income plan, but each time he avoided answering and rebuked his opponents," adding, "Such behavior from Governor Lee is extremely rude."

Democratic Party presidential candidates are closely watching the online voting results from the Chungcheong region, which will be announced on June 4. They see it as a turning point that will gauge the mood of the primary race. Meanwhile, other candidates are busy with their final campaign schedules. Former Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae and Congressman Kim Doo-kwan have scheduled interviews with media outlets, and Congressman Park Yong-jin held a press briefing at the Chungbuk Provincial Office that morning and plans to conduct interviews with local Chungbuk media as well.

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