Presidential Election D-27 Moon's Message... Will It Shake the Election Landscape?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy reporters Lee Ji-eun and Na Ju-seok] As President Moon Jae-in clashes with Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party candidate, less than a month before the presidential election, the election scene has been thrown into turmoil. Since President Moon, who had maintained neutrality until now, appears to have effectively intervened in the election, the political sphere is expected to grapple with a complex calculation regarding the balance of support.

President Moon had previously urged strict neutrality and fair management concerning the upcoming presidential election and refrained from commenting on individual candidates' remarks. However, recently, as candidate Yoon began to actively promote the "judgment of the Moon Jae-in administration" by framing the current government as a target of "investigations into accumulated evils," including remarks about "cleansing deep-rooted evils," it seems President Moon judged that he could no longer remain silent.

On the 9th, the Regime Change Accompaniment Committee directly under candidate Yoon released four interview-style videos on their YouTube channel, expressing Yoon's thoughts. In these videos, Yoon used strong expressions such as "I have never seen a government like this," and "They say this government is the successor of the Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun administrations, but that is a lie," heightening confrontation. In media interviews, when asked whether he would investigate the previous administration for accumulated evils if elected, he replied, "Of course, I will." Although he added that "the president does not intervene, and it is done according to the system," he still referred to the current government as a target for investigation into accumulated evils.

The Blue House expressed "strong displeasure" through a senior official the day before, but candidate Yoon maintained his position, saying, "If there is no problem, there is nothing to be displeased about." It appears that this led to the judgment that President Moon needed to deliver a direct message.

With less than a month left before the election, the clash between the president and the main opposition party candidate has drawn attention to its potential impact on the direction of support rates. In polls, the judgment of the current administration surpasses Yoon's support rate. According to a survey conducted by Gallup on behalf of Money Today from the 7th to 8th, targeting 1,007 adults nationwide, 54.6% favored regime change, ahead of 37.5% who favored regime maintenance. Considering Yoon's support rate of 40.1% in a multi-candidate race, emphasizing the judgment of the current administration could be a factor contributing to boosting Yoon's support.

Moreover, with the issue of unification with Ahn Cheol-soo, the People's Party presidential candidate, still alive, Yoon positioning himself as the suitable candidate for regime judgment is effective both in the unification phase and in the scenario where he runs independently without unification.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, President Moon, who maintains a support rate in the 40% range even in the latter half of his term, expressing his position is also expected to have a considerable effect of consolidating the pro-Moon faction's support behind the ruling party candidate. Woo Sang-ho, the Democratic Party's general election campaign headquarters chief, said, "Both the direct remarks and their intensity suggest that the president was very angry," adding, "I spoke with many pro-Moon faction lawmakers, and they are all furious. Even those who had been passive are saying they cannot remain silent," and "It can be seen as a last-minute variable that could cause a backlash."

On the other hand, the People Power Party appears to continue the confrontation by asserting the legitimacy of the judgment of the current administration. Although no official response has been issued yet, Lee Jun-seok, the party leader, warned via social media, "Our candidate, who has fairly conducted investigations into corrupt individuals regardless of the regime, mentioned the principle that if the Moon Jae-in government also made mistakes, it cannot be a sanctuary. The Blue House reacted angrily to this," adding, "The act of trying to discredit the opposition candidate by overreacting to a principle is a clear election intervention." He further stated, "I hope the next 28 days will not be a prelude to the Blue House nitpicking and attacking the opposition candidate on every issue."

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