Jeong Sye-gyun Declares Candidacy: "Achieve $40,000 National Income, Freeze Large Corporations' Wages for 3 Years... I Will Be the Economy President"

by Jeon Jinyoung

Published 17 Jun.2021 16:22(KST)

Updated 22 Mar.2023 13:16(KST)

“I Will Become an Economic President Who Confronts Inequality”
Jung Sye-kyun Officially Declares Presidential Candidacy
Money Earned by the People Should Be Returned to the People... Era of $40,000 Income
Three-Year Wage Freeze for Large Corporations and Financial Public Enterprises... Social Grand Bargain

Former Prime Minister Jeong Se-gyun of the Democratic Party of Korea is declaring his candidacy for the presidential election on the 17th at Nurikum Square in Sangam-dong, Seoul. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] “I, Jeong Se-gyun, will become a strong economic president of Korea who confronts all inequalities in the Republic of Korea!”

Applause echoed along with the vigorous voice of former Prime Minister Jeong Se-gyun. On the 17th, Jeong officially declared his candidacy for the presidential election. He is the first among the ruling party’s ‘Big 3 (Lee Nak-yeon, Lee Jae-myung, Jeong Se-gyun)’ to make an official announcement.

On the afternoon of the same day, former Prime Minister Jeong held a press conference at Nurikum Square in Seoul under the slogan “Strong Republic of Korea Economic President.” He pledged to be “a president who confronts all inequalities in Korea,” proposing promises such as the “era of $40,000 national income” and “a three-year freeze on salaries of executives and workers in large corporations.”

Even before the conference began, supporters crowded outside the venue. Some chanted Jeong Se-gyun’s name, and others held signs saying, “Where the people are, Jeong Se-gyun is there; where Jeong Se-gyun is, the people are there.”

Former Prime Minister Jeong Se-gyun of the Democratic Party declared his candidacy for the presidential election on the 17th at Nurikum Square in Sangam-dong, Seoul. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

Bold pledges of ‘$40,000 national income era’ and ‘three-year freeze on salaries of large corporation executives and workers’

Wearing a dark gray suit and a sky-blue shirt, former Prime Minister Jeong read his declaration of candidacy with a somewhat tense expression. He stated, “I will be a president who confronts all inequalities in Korea,” presenting pledges such as the “$40,000 national income era” and “proposal to freeze salaries of executives and workers in large corporations for three years.”

Jeong explained, “Export-oriented large corporations have grown significantly, but the incomes of the majority of ordinary citizens, the middle class, and farmers and fishermen have not increased. The money earned by the people must be returned to the people.”

He viewed social grand compromise as essential for this. He said, “Is the sweat of workers in large corporations different from that of workers in small and medium enterprises? Sweat should not be discriminated against. I propose freezing dividends to major shareholders of conglomerates and the salaries of executives and workers for three years. The same applies to financial public enterprises.”

He emphasized, “I will mobilize all possible means to significantly raise wages and incomes to build a strong Korea.” The guests at the conference applauded and cheered.

Regarding real estate, he said, “Rather than controlling real estate, I will build,” pledging to supply one million public rental housing units and 300,000 public sale apartments during his term.

He also stressed that he is a morally verified leader. Former Prime Minister Jeong said, “The most necessary virtue for a leader is trust,” adding, “Unverified morality and unexamined potential cannot earn the trust of the people.” This appeared to be a remark targeting leading presidential candidates Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung and former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl.

Kim Seong-su, former lawmaker and Jeong’s chief of staff, told reporters after the conference that the proposal of $40,000 national income was “boldly presented despite being taboo for presidential candidates to specify figures since Lee Myung-bak’s ‘747’ and Park Geun-hye’s ‘474’ pledges,” emphasizing, “It expresses great confidence.”

Kim also said, “The pledge to freeze wages in conglomerates was made after much deliberation. Although it is a controversial pledge, the candidate’s will was very strong. Please understand that this reflects confidence in achieving social grand compromise and the candidate’s experience in doing so.”

Former Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun of the Democratic Party of Korea is having a 'Conversation with the Future Generation' with young people at Nurikum Square in Sangam-dong, Seoul on the 17th. Former Prime Minister Chung announced his candidacy for the presidential election on the same day. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

Youth step onto the stage, font is ‘Newtro’... targeting 2030 generation

At the conference, there was also an appeal to the 2030 generation, whose interest has grown due to the ‘Lee Jun-seok phenomenon.’ Before declaring his candidacy, former Prime Minister Jeong briefly held a Q&A session with six young people in their 20s and 30s. Wearing a relatively casual outfit without a jacket, he went on stage with the six youths. One young person asked, “What do you think about the stagnation in approval ratings?” Jeong smiled and replied, “Can I touch on a sore spot? Yes, it’s somewhat problematic.” He added, “I competed against candidate Oh Se-hoon in Jongno during the 20th general election, and many people were concerned about me. But I won by a large margin. I am challenging the presidency with the belief that it is definitely possible.”

Jeong’s campaign directly developed a font for this declaration of candidacy. The font targets ‘Newtro,’ a blend of New and Retro. Kim explained, “Retro symbolizes former Prime Minister Jeong’s maturity and experience, combined with youthfulness. We developed the ‘Jeong Se-gyun font’ by strengthening the old signboard font of Euljiro, which has a 60s and 70s atmosphere but attracts the younger generation.”

About 50 members of the Democratic Party, including former party leader Lee Nak-yeon and lawmakers Kim Du-kwan and Lee Kwang-jae, attended the declaration. Former Prime Minister Jeong plans to continue focusing on the economy, starting with a regulatory innovation meeting next week.