'Drunk Driving Controversy' Shakes Up Yeosu Mayoral Race... Democratic Party and Innovation Party Clash

Escalating Mutual Criticism Amid Candidate Vetting Controversy
Signs of a Full-Blown Confrontation Between Democratic Party and Innovation Party
"Shielding Behind the President" vs "Fomenting Division"

The conflict between the Democratic Party and the Cho Kuk Innovation Party is intensifying over the mayoral election in Yeosu, Jeollanam-do. In particular, the controversy over a candidate’s past drunk driving record has escalated, extending to President Lee Jaemyung’s own history with drunk driving, leading to harsher criticism and stronger rhetoric.

On May 13, the spokesperson group of the Democratic Party’s Jeollanam-do branch issued a statement saying, “During the recent Yeosu mayoral election, the Cho Kuk Innovation Party candidate’s side has responded to the issue of their candidate’s drunk driving record with the attitude of ‘What’s wrong with drunk driving?’ Furthermore, they are even bringing up President Lee Jaemyung’s own past drunk driving convictions to deflect attention from their own candidate’s issues.”

The Democratic Party took issue with the fact that this statement and the related social media posts were made by Choi Haeguk, who holds the spokesperson title for the Cho Kuk Innovation Party’s Jeollanam-do branch.

The Democratic Party’s Jeollanam-do spokesperson group emphasized, “Candidate vetting is a natural part of elections, and drunk driving is a serious social crime that threatens citizens’ lives and safety. Candidates for public office must be held to an even higher moral standard.”

They continued, “Rather than offering a sincere explanation or an apology to citizens regarding their candidate’s drunk driving controversy, the Cho Kuk Innovation Party is suddenly making President Lee Jaemyung’s past criminal record public on social media, attempting to water down the issue by claiming, ‘The Democratic Party is no different.’”

They further criticized, “Instead of explaining and taking responsibility for their own candidate’s issues, they are cowardly trying to shield themselves by using the sitting president as a scapegoat. Any social media activities or political messages from the spokesperson are inevitably perceived as the official stance of the party.”

The Democratic Party’s Jeollanam-do branch especially asserted, “It is a serious breach of political ethics to drag the sitting president’s past criminal record into the debate in order to cover up their own candidate’s moral controversy and to use it as material for attack and ridicule. This cannot be justified under any circumstances.”

The Cho Kuk Innovation Party’s Jeollanam-do branch countered these claims by the Democratic Party, calling them “political attacks.”

In a statement released on the same day, the Cho Kuk Innovation Party’s Jeollanam-do branch said, “An election should be a celebration of democracy, where policies and visions for the future that can change citizens’ lives compete. Politics that disparage opponents and incite hatred and division only deepen public distrust in politics and divide the local community.”

They stressed, “Candidates and parties should not be judged by who attacks their opponent more, but by who is better prepared to take responsibility for the future of the region.”

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