Ahn Cheol-soo: "Choi Kyung-hwan as 'Conservative Coalition', Emphasizing the Theory of Embracing Moderates"

Former Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the pro-Park faction, Choi Kyung-hwan, met with non-Yoon (非尹) figures within the party and said, "We must unite as a conservative coalition." In response, Ahn Cheol-soo, a member of the People Power Party, interpreted this as a message emphasizing a 'centrist inclusion theory' rather than an 'anti-Yoon coalition.'

On the 4th, during CBS's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' Ahn said, "Looking at the current election landscape, since the coalition of conservatives and centrists led to victory in the last presidential election, restoring the conservative-centrist coalition is essential for winning this election. That is how I understood his remarks."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Former Deputy Prime Minister Choi mentioned the need for a conservative coalition, citing Ahn Cheol-soo, former lawmakers Na Kyung-won and Yoo Seung-min, and former People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok as part of this coalition. Some within the pro-Yoon group criticized this, suggesting it might be an 'anti-Yoon coalition.'

However, Ahn responded, "Well, I think that goes a bit too far. I don't recall any such talk at all," adding, "Rather, we discussed how our camp could win. There was no statement that could be considered worrisome beyond that."

Ahn expressed concern about the stagnation of centrist support. He said, "What worries me is that when the last presidential election results came out, the current president's approval rating was much higher among centrists and the non-affiliated. But now, if you look at it, it has consistently hovered around 20%, especially according to Gallup polls, for more than half a year," adding, "How to restore this will likely determine the outcome of this election."

Regarding the release of contaminated water from Fukushima, he said, "I saw a public opinion poll where 80% expressed concern about it. I can't recall such a high figure before," and added, "Therefore, the government must take responsibility and, if it decides to proceed with the release, must sincerely and wholeheartedly make efforts to persuade the public."

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