Hong Jun-pyo: "If All Pre-Marriage Matters Are Understood, We Must Forgive 'Lee Jae-myung, Four-Time Offender'"

Lee Jun-seok "It is excessive to hold a candidate responsible for matters before marriage"
Hong Joon-pyo "Are all of Lee Jae-myung's actions before public office invalid? A world full of unreasonable excuses"

Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party (left), and his spouse Kim Geon-hee (right). [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Soyoung] Hong Joon-pyo, a member of the People Power Party, commented on the escalating controversy surrounding Kim Gun-hee, the spouse of presidential candidate Yoon Seok-yeol, saying, "One woman is shaking up the presidential race. It is a regrettable situation."

On the 14th, Hong responded this way to a question in the 'Cheongmun Hongdap (Hong Joon-pyo answers the concerns of youth)' segment on the Youth Dream platform, asking, "Do you think Ms. Kim is fit to be the First Lady?"

However, he made it clear that his view differs from that of party leader Lee Jun-seok, who said, "Most of the issues being raised seem to have occurred long before the candidate and his spouse got married, so we should consider that when looking at them."

On the same day, Lee appeared on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' and stated, "If the candidate, as a public official, failed to restrain his wife's behavior even after marriage, there might be some grounds for criticism, but holding the candidate responsible for events before marriage is excessive."

He added, "In the case of candidate Lee Jae-myung, he has about four criminal records due to his own mistakes, but we do not constantly demand apologies for that."

In response, Hong criticized, "If everything that happened before marriage is acceptable, then all four of Lee Jae-myung's criminal records before holding public office should be forgiven. We live in a world full of excuses that are not convincing." He also replied to a member's post criticizing Lee's remarks with the comment, "Are all of Lee Jae-myung's actions before public office invalid?"

Earlier, Kim said in an interview with YTN regarding allegations that she falsified credentials on a past professor application, "It was an ambition to stand out," adding, "If that is a crime, then it is a crime." She questioned, "I did not use the awards to get into school, so what is the problem? I am not a public official or a public figure, and I was not married to candidate Yoon Seok-yeol at the time, so why should I be scrutinized to this extent?"

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