Hong Jun-pyo's 'Social Distancing' Makes 'One Team' Distant

Yoon Seok-yeol's Side Repeatedly Declines Invitations
"An Unreasonable Presidential Election Among Corruption Suspects"

People Power Party lawmaker Hong Jun-pyo is delivering a greeting at the JP Hope Camp closing ceremony held on the 8th at BNB Tower in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Geum Bo-ryeong] Despite the continuous courting efforts by Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, to attract Representative Hong Jun-pyo, who enjoys high approval ratings among young voters in their 20s and 30s, Hong’s camp is still keeping their distance. On the 8th, Hong posted on Facebook again, saying, "It is truly regrettable that this has become an irrational presidential election where candidates accused of corruption are competing against each other." This is the sixth time he has posted such content since the People Power Party’s presidential candidate was decided. Hong’s repeated emphasis on his intention to 'not participate in the presidential election' seems to be aimed at clearly conveying his position, which he feels has not been accurately understood.

Despite Hong’s repeated declarations of non-participation, Yoon’s side continues to stress the necessity of a 'one team.' Ha Tae-kyung, co-chairman of Yoon’s campaign committee, appeared on KBS radio that day and said, "Hong is a person with political genius," and emphasized, "I think Yoon should regard Hong as a political mentor." During the primary process, Ha was known as the so-called 'Hong Jun-pyo sniper.' However, Ha said, "I believe (Yoon) must devote himself wholeheartedly to win over Hong." Yoon himself also mentioned on Facebook the day before, referring to Hong, former Representative Yoo Seung-min, and former Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong as "our comrades for regime change."

There is also a sense within the campaign that if persuasion continues, Hong will eventually join the election campaign committee. Yoon’s campaign spokesperson Yoon Hee-seok said on TBS radio that day, "Regarding whether Hong will join, I think as time passes and the situation changes, a positive outcome can be expected."

However, Hong’s stance on not participating in the presidential election appears firm. In his Facebook post that day, besides mentioning candidates accused of corruption, he also implied that he has somewhat come to terms with the situation by saying things like, "It is the choice of party members and the people, so there is no alternative," "This is a desperate election where one of the two must go to prison if they lose," and "Don’t think about running the election with party sentiment that is less than one percent of public opinion." The day before, he wrote, "I have no intention of participating in a corruption-suspected election led by the prosecution for the first time in history. Must one join the presidential campaign organization to be considered one team?" Hong has previously stated that instead of joining the campaign committee, he will focus on creating a platform where young people can express their opinions.

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