Lee Jae-myung's Love Call to Ahn Cheol-soo: "Once Served as a Leader and Respected in My Own Way"

Ahn Cheol-soo and Yoon Seok-yeol Fail to Unite Opposition
Lee Jae-myung: "Ahn's New Politics Dream Aligns with Mine in Some Aspects"

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, highly praised Ahn Cheol-soo, the People's Party presidential candidate.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] Amid the de facto collapse of opposition candidate unification, Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, praised Ahn Cheol-soo, the People Power Party presidential candidate, saying, "He is someone I once served as a representative for, so I respect him in my own way." In political circles, there is an interpretation that Lee is sending a 'love call' for unification to Ahn.

On the 22nd, Lee stated on KBS Radio's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strongest Current Affairs,' "Ahn's dream of new politics aligns with the political reform, political regime change beyond mere power transition, and era change that I have often spoken about."

Lee continued, "If we add a bit more practical issues, since we hold a large number of seats, political reform can be carried out as long as there is consensus," adding, "Regarding a unified government, my usual belief is that all camps except the opposing side who say 'we can't do it' should join forces, use capable talents and good policies, and let the people evaluate us."

When the host asked if he meant to form a unified government with Ahn, Lee replied, "I did not specifically refer to any candidate but suggested that all cooperative camps come together," and dismissed the interpretation that he had proposed unification specifically to Ahn as somewhat burdensome.

Earlier, on the 20th, Lee also sent a love call to Ahn. On the night of the 20th, he posted on his Facebook, saying, "I empathize with Ahn's anguish," and "I sympathize with Ahn's desire and will for ending the old political system and political reform toward new politics."

Within the Democratic Party, the possibility of an alliance with Ahn is also being kept open. On the 20th, party leader Song Young-gil met with reporters at the Yeouido party office in Seoul and emphasized, "We value and are ready to accept the science and technology powerhouse agenda proposed by candidate Ahn Cheol-soo."

Song added, "Beyond the tactical unification in this election, even if the Democratic Party comes to power, we are always open to forming a unified government as Lee Jae-myung said," and "As I have consistently said, the spirit of the science and technology powerhouse that candidate Ahn advocates has been fully embraced by candidate Lee Jae-myung and absorbed into the pledge for the Deputy Prime Minister for Science and Technology."

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