Fierce Public Sentiment Search... Yoon Meets Lee Who Went to Temple and a Pastor

Lee "Let's Meet for Livelihood Reform"
Emphasizing Image as Administrator and Executor

Yoon Counters Daejang-dong Favoritism Attack
Organizes Election Strategy Team by Gathering Opinions

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, is attending the Central Election Countermeasures Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 8th and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporters Koo Chae-eun and Lee Hyun-joo] As the ruling and opposition parties' presidential candidates have been decided, a tense atmosphere is flowing between the two candidates, Lee Jae-myung and Yoon Seok-youl, from the first weekday after the decision. The opposition party responded to Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party candidate's proposal for a 'one-on-one meeting' by saying, "It's not something to meet like a political show." Lee's proposal to Yoon to "hold a meeting to derive a livelihood reform plan to be agreed upon within the regular National Assembly session" is interpreted as a strategic move to strengthen his image as an ‘administrator and executor’ who is ahead of Yoon by preempting the ‘policy agenda.’ On the other hand, Yoon's side seems to perceive that hastily agreeing to a meeting with Lee, who has more political experience, could lead to being caught up in a political maneuver.

Ko Yong-jin, the chief spokesperson of the election campaign committee, explained to reporters after the Supreme Council meeting that day, "Through a one-on-one meeting and policy discussion, we want to spend the remaining four months of the presidential election period productively, reach agreements where possible, legislate them, and return benefits to the people." Ko also said, "We should not remain in the past but overcome the COVID-19 crisis and move forward." The Democratic Party's strategy appears to highlight Lee's strength in being relatively well-versed in policy issues compared to Yoon, while also attempting to turn the ‘Daejang-dong preferential treatment attack’ into a ‘livelihood reform agenda’ as a winning move. Lee emphasized at the campaign committee meeting that day, "I think we should focus more on the lives of our people."

Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, attended the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 8th and received a lucky pouch from Lee Jun-seok, the party leader, before the meeting started, saying it would be helpful for the election. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

However, the People Power Party side said, "We are open to the meeting itself," but did not dismiss suspicions that it might be a ‘political show.’ In fact, Yoon's side showed no particular response to Lee's proposal until the morning of that day. Instead, Yoon focused on defining this presidential election as a "war against corruption fighting the mastermind behind the Daejang-dong gate" at the party's Supreme Council meeting. He especially targeted Lee's Daejang-dong allegations, saying, "What has been revealed is just the tip of the iceberg," and "The fight against the cartel backed by political power is not easy." Yoon said, "We will listen to the opinions of the party leader, floor leader, lawmakers, former emergency committee chairs, and senior advisors to form an election campaign organization together with the party," adding, "Even if it takes some time, we will gather such consensus and launch it."

Meanwhile, the first weekday schedule after the completion of the ruling and opposition candidates' lineup coincidentally involved both candidates courting the religious community's public sentiment. Yoon visited Far East Broadcasting Company in Mapo-gu, Seoul, at 7 a.m. that day to meet Pastor Kim Jang-hwan and had breakfast together. Lee also visited the Jogye Order and the Korea Christian Federation, marking his first visit to religious leaders since being selected as the Democratic Party's presidential candidate.

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