Yoon Seok-yeol's All-Round Weapon Lee Jun-seok... "From Wind-Maker to Vanguard Breaking Honam Wall"

Yoon Seok-yeol Acts as Key Rally Supporter, Touring Regions
Leading Efforts to Win Over Honam Voters in Unyielding Campaign

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the People Power Party, is playing the role of an all-weather weapon for Yoon Seok-yeol, the party's presidential candidate. From gauging grassroots sentiment to issue fighting, he is actively working on all fronts, changing the negative opinion within the party toward him. The atmosphere is completely different from when he was criticized for raising the issue of Yoon's core aides (Yoonhaekgwan), which was said to have triggered internal division ahead of the presidential election.

On the 18th, Lee started his day with a greeting at Woonam Station in Daegu and toured the Daegu Agricultural and Marine Products Wholesale Market, Chilseong Market, Seonam New Market, Gwanmun Market, and the Dongseong-ro area. He is campaigning in Daegu, a key support area for the People Power Party. Since Yoon is scheduled to campaign here at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. that day, Lee is strongly positioned as a 'wind catcher' ahead of Yoon's visits. On the first official day of the election campaign on the 15th, Lee also energized the atmosphere by touring alleys in Busan before Yoon arrived.

This flow was somewhat expected. When Lee attended the People Power Party's parliamentary meeting at the National Assembly on the 14th, he expressed his determination, saying, "Once the campaign starts, I will visit as many regions as possible to communicate with residents and party members. Since the candidate cannot visit all areas, I will run up to 15 places a day if it helps." He is also leading the flow by taking a strong stance against Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate of the People’s Party, on the unification issue. Recently, he has even pressured by mentioning a merger with the People’s Party.

Lee also took the lead in courting Honam, where the People Power Party's support is weak. He visited Gwangju during Lunar New Year and climbed Mudeungsan Mountain. Before the official campaign, all campaign materials that preliminary candidates could send were made into printed materials in the form of handwritten letters by Yoon and sent to the Honam region. The 'Passion Train,' a campaign method using trains, was also a plan he led for the Honam campaign. Recently, when the Democratic Party opposed Yoon's pledge to attract a complex shopping mall in Gwangju, Lee proposed a public debate and responded accordingly, creating issues in Honam based on 'pragmatism.' Gaining confidence, Lee announced that he is raising the Honam support rate target from 25% to 30% in this presidential election.

In political circles, Lee’s actions are seen not only as support for Yoon but also as efforts for his own political future.

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