Lee Jae-myung Holding a Blue Rose... Will He Capture the Swing Female Vote Like a 'Miracle'?

Lee, Will She Achieve a 'Golden Cross' by Joining Hands with the 2030 Female Floating Voters?
Democratic Party Apologizes for Power-Related Sexual Crimes and Dating Murder Defense
Emphasizes 'Women-Friendly Messages' Daily... Even 'Women Campaigns'

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, attended the rally titled "For All of Us, Towards a Gender-Equal Society" held at Boshingak site in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 3rd, greeting with a blue rose in hand. Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers.

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] Recently emphasizing women-friendly messages, Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, appeared at a 'women's campaign' event holding a blue rose. As the presidential race nears its final stage, with Lee slightly trailing Yoon Seok-youl, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, attention is focused on whether Lee can achieve a 'golden cross' (a reversal in approval ratings) like a miracle, which is the flower language of the blue rose.

On the 3rd, Lee focused on capturing the female vote by holding a women-focused campaign in front of Bosingak in Jongno-gu, Seoul, under the slogan "For all of us, towards a gender-equal society." Lee said, "I will take responsibility for creating a safe country where no one worries about crime," and emphasized, "I will firmly protect women's daily lives from sexual crimes. We will respond strongly to digital sexual crimes with a zero-tolerance policy and confiscate all criminal proceeds without leaving a single penny."

Lee raised his voice, saying, "Unfortunately, discrimination, hatred, and division are rampant in our society right now," and added, "Some politicians divide men and women, regions, and generations for their political gain, driving our society into conflict and division. We must put an end to this bad politics this time."

Supporters are gathered at the rally of Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, titled "For All of Us, Towards a Gender-Equal Society," held on the 3rd at Boshingak site in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers Group

Lee's change in messaging toward women has become more prominent in the final stages of the presidential race. In the last TV debate hosted by the National Election Commission on the 2nd, he apologized for the power-related sexual crimes committed by the late Park Won-soon, former mayor of Seoul, Ahn Hee-jung, former governor of Chungnam, and Oh Keo-don, former mayor of Busan. He also repeatedly questioned Yoon, who had been criticized for remarks related to 'structural gender discrimination,' asking, "Is there structural gender discrimination or not?"

When Yoon ambiguously responded, "I cannot say there is none at all, but we should not approach it by collectively dividing women and men under the concept of gender equality," Lee pointed out, "Gender discrimination is the reality we are experiencing, and efforts to overcome this reality, whether called feminism or anything else, should be respected."

On the same day, Lee also apologized for his past defense of his nephew in a dating murder case. Lee explained, "As a lawyer, I had no choice but to defend the accused, but I acknowledge my shortcomings. I apologize to the victims. This has nothing to do with feminism. It is a conflict between a lawyer's professional ethics and social responsibility."

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, attended the rally "For All of Us, Towards a Gender-Equal Society" held at Boshingak site in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 3rd, and took a commemorative photo with participants including Park Ji-hyun, Chairperson of the Central Election Committee's Special Committee for Eradicating Digital Sexual Crimes (second from the left below). Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers Group

Earlier, in November last year, Lee faced criticism for sharing a post on his SNS titled "Stop the madness of feminism" and appearing on male-centered communities, raising suspicions that he was trying to target the votes of young men in their 20s (Idaenam) by exploiting anti-feminist sentiment. However, at the end of January, he recruited Park Ji-hyun, a former member of the 'Chasing Fire' group that helped publicize the Nth Room case, as the vice chairperson of the Democratic Party's election committee's women's committee and chairperson of the special committee on digital sexual crimes, signaling a shift in his messaging toward women. Park's role was especially highlighted in this women-centered campaign.

The Democratic Party's election committee announced that 7,431 young women in their 20s and 30s declared support for Lee during the women's campaign. Earlier, on the 28th of last month, Vice Chairperson Park posted on her social media, urging, "I believe the unity of women in their 20s and 30s can produce the results we want. I believe Lee Jae-myung will do well," encouraging support for Lee. Park's focused appeal to female voters appears to have had a positive effect.

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, is greeting cheering supporters at the 'For All of Us, Towards a Gender-Equal Society' rally held at the Boshingak site in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 3rd. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group

Women in their 20s and 30s, who are sensitive to everyday safety issues such as sexual crimes, are responding positively to Lee, who has been emphasizing related policies, even if belatedly. A woman in her 20s, Ms. Lee, said, "Among the two leading candidates, there was no one I wanted to vote for. But voting for a minor party seemed like a wasted vote. There has been a lot of talk that women's voices have been marginalized in this election, but now that I hear emphasis on women's safety, I am interested."

A woman in her 30s, Ms. Kim, said, "Lee's image was not good because of the defense of his nephew in a murder case and his insults toward his sister-in-law. I suspect that his current emphasis on women's policies is because it's urgent." However, she added, "Still, I think he is better than Yoon Seok-youl, who makes absurd claims that feminism is humanism."

Meanwhile, it is predicted that the 6% undecided voters will be a decisive variable in the 20th presidential election. On the 2nd, Kang Hoon-sik, head of the Democratic Party's election committee's strategic planning, said at a press briefing at the Democratic Party office in Yeouido, Seoul, "Recent trends in surveys show a neck-and-neck race within the margin of error," and analyzed, "The undecided voters have decreased from 15% to 6% over the past three weeks. The remaining 6% will be the battleground between camps and candidates."

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