Lee Jae-myung: "Political change over regime change... I will not use 'Lee Jae-myung Government'"

Declaration of 'Political Change and National Unity' in Myeongdong... "Formation of National Unity Promotion Committee for National Unity Government"

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, visited the National Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak-gu, Seoul on the 14th. After paying respects at the Memorial Tower, he is writing in the guestbook. Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers Group

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, declared "political change and national unity" in the heart of Myeongdong, Seoul, on the 14th, one day before the official election campaign began. He argued that what the people need now is not a "blind" regime change but political and societal change, stating, "In the giant two-party system, which can rightly be called hostile symbiosis, our Democratic Party will relinquish all vested interests it has enjoyed." Lee chose Busan as his first official election campaign location on the 15th.

Lee said, "(Myeongdong) symbolizes overcoming crises and leaps in modern Korean history," adding, "We begin a grand journey to overcome the crisis of the Republic of Korea and make a new leap on this Myeongdong street, which was the last campaign site of presidential candidates Kim Dae-jung in 1997 and Roh Moo-hyun in 2002."

He also mentioned the formation of a "National Unity Promotion Committee (tentative name)" to realize a national unity government. Lee expressed his intention not to use the term "Lee Jae-myung government," and added that he would introduce a parliamentary recommendation system for the Prime Minister and practically guarantee constitutional powers such as the Prime Minister's authority to recommend ministers.

He promised to pursue constitutional amendments during his term. Lee said, "Instead of a comprehensive amendment that is difficult to agree on, we will sequentially pursue what is feasible," adding, "We will specify responsibility for the May 18 Democratic Movement and environmental crisis response, strengthen citizens' basic rights including economic rights, enhance local autonomy, and decentralize the powers of the imperial presidency by transferring the Audit and Inspection Board to the National Assembly."

Before the declaration, Lee paid respects at the National Seoul National Cemetery. He said, "This is a turning point to decide whether we return to the past full of political revenge or move toward a true democratic nation centered on the people with fair competition," and added, "I will mobilize every ounce of my soul and do my utmost with all my strength."

Lee's strategy is to start from Busan, one of the key battlegrounds in this presidential election, and move along the Gyeongbu Line to win votes. Initially, it was known that the party had marked Honam as the first campaign site internally. However, unlike former Presidents Roh Moo-hyun and Moon Jae-in, Lee does not have deep ties to Busan, so he selected Busan as his "first campaign site."

The party's campaign efforts will also intensify. To avoid physical contact with voters, a "drive-in" campaign using cars will be introduced, where Lee will give speeches to supporters while seated in a vehicle at outdoor campaign sites. All campaign vehicles will be equipped with "AI Lee Jae-myung" to deliver community-focused local pledges. Real-time campaign information will be provided through the online platform "Jaemyung's Village."

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