'Yongsan Presidential Office' Name Remains Unchanged... Criticism Over "Why Hold a Public Contest?"

Presidential Office "Agreed It's Difficult to Garner Public Sympathy"
Amid Criticism of "Undermining the Contest Purpose," Some Say "We Need Time to Decide"

President Yoon Suk-yeol is answering questions from reporters as he arrives at the Yongsan Presidential Office building on the morning of the 9th. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] The name of the Presidential Office, which relocated to Yongsan, Seoul, has been effectively decided as the 'Yongsan Presidential Office.' The Presidential Office selected five final candidates through a public contest held over a month from mid-April but ultimately decided not to adopt any due to a lack of 'public consensus.'

Kang Inseon, spokesperson for the Presidential Office, stated at a briefing held at the Presidential Office building on the 14th, "The Presidential Office New Name Committee held its final meeting and, after nearly two hours of discussion, decided not to recommend a new name."

Previously, the Presidential Office received about 30,000 submissions through the public contest and shortlisted five final candidates: 'Gukmin-ui Jip' (House of the People), 'Gukmin Cheongsa' (People's Government Building), 'Min-eum Cheongsa,' 'Bareunnuri,' and 'Itaewon-ro 22.' In a public preference survey conducted from the 3rd to the 9th, 'Itaewon-ro 22' ranked first with 32.1% of the votes, followed by 'Gukmin Cheongsa' with 28.1%.

However, the Presidential Office explained that it decided not to select any candidate because it was difficult for any of the candidates to gain widespread public support. Spokesperson Kang said, "Considering the negative public opinion toward each name, we agreed that all five candidates would have difficulty forming a national consensus."

The Presidential Office evaluated 'Itaewon-ro 22,' which received the most votes, as calm and unburdensome but noted that it felt too light to be used as the Presidential Office's name and that there were criticisms it seemed to borrow from the UK Prime Minister's Office at 10 Downing Street. Regarding 'Gukmin Cheongsa,' it was said to be easy to call and friendly but was criticized for resembling the building used by the Chinese Kuomintang in the past.

'Gukmin-ui Jip' was not chosen because it was similar to a party name and could be subject to criticism, while 'Min-eum Cheongsa' and 'Bareunnuri' were also rejected because they respectively reminded people of a publishing company and a specific political party.

Spokesperson Kang added, "Considering the example of 'Cheongwadae' (Blue House), which was used for over 60 years, we decided to take more time until a natural and appropriate name emerges rather than rushing to decide," and expressed gratitude to the public who participated in the contest and preference survey despite no final winner.

The presidential office viewed from Yongsan Park. / Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

Some criticism has arisen that the public contest's purpose was undermined because no submission was adopted. There are remarks questioning, "If the Presidential Office was going to decide on its own anyway, why hold a contest?"

According to some media reports, President Yoon Seok-yeol reportedly mentioned at a luncheon with the People Power Party leadership on the 10th that "he did not like any of the submissions."

However, there is also considerable opinion that the name of the Presidential Office should be decided carefully, as it will be used as a symbol of the country for a long time. Political commentator Yoo Chang-seon said, "Once decided, it is difficult to change again, and it should be a name that can be naturally used even if the administration changes, so time to consider these factors is necessary."

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