Lee Jun-seok "Appointing Lee Jae-myung as High School Senior Campaign Committee Chair... A Very Shallow Thought"

Lee, 9 out of 10 Co-Chief Campaign Committee Members Filled with Youth

Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, introduced Nam Jin-hee, a third-year student at Gwangju Girls' High School and co-chairperson of the Gwangju Grand Transition Campaign Committee, at the launch ceremony held on the 28th at the Kim Dae-jung Convention Center in Seo-gu, Gwangju.
/Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, appointed an 18-year-old high school student as co-chairman of the 'Gwangju Great Transformation Campaign Committee,' which Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, criticized by saying, "If you think you can gain the support of the younger generation by giving benefits to just one person, that is a very shallow thought."

On the 29th, Lee responded this way to a question on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' asking, "How do you evaluate candidate Lee's expansion efforts toward the youth, such as appointing a high school senior as a campaign committee chairman?"

He previously mentioned the debate battle 'I am the National Representative,' held to select the People Power Party spokesperson, saying, "This time, candidate Lee Jae-myung gave the campaign committee chairman position to a high school senior, and when we held the debate battle, a 19-year-old student named Kim Min-gyu participated. Kim reached the quarterfinals but was eliminated afterward. Kim was given the opportunity to compete."

He continued, "The person who became the campaign committee chairman yesterday was simply appointed," emphasizing, "What the younger generation thinks is the true path to political participation matters. When I became the party leader in my 30s, the Democratic Party or the government responded by hiring Secretary Park Seong-min. The effect of becoming a party leader in your 30s at a party convention and appointing a youth secretary was different."

Lee said, "Giving opportunities to the younger generation and instilling confidence that they can compete fairly is my vote-winning strategy," and pointed out, "Thinking that the 2030 generation will come just because one person is given benefits is a very shallow thought of candidate Lee Jae-myung."

Earlier, candidate Lee Jae-myung visited Gwangju on the 28th and launched the first regional campaign committee. Among the 10 co-chairmen, only one is a current lawmaker, and besides the high school senior, the other nine co-chairmen appointed were also from the 2030 youth generation.

Nam Jin-hee, a high school senior serving as co-chairman, said, "I hope for a president who listens to and empathizes with our stories," adding, "I stand here to raise the voices of youth and young adults for the proper development of the Republic of Korea."

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