Category: Politics-Korea

Here is the latest update on the Korean presidential race:

Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl and People’s Party Chairman Ahn Cheol-soo had their first meeting on Wednesday and agreed to work together for the opposition’s victory in next year’s presidential election.   
   
Yoon, who announced his presidential bid last month, met with Ahn, a two-time former presidential candidate in 2012 and 2017, for an almost 2 hour luncheon. According to their spokesmen, Yoon and Ahn agreed to continue their political and policy alliance.    
   
Yoon and Ahn agreed that they will work together to deter the Democratic Party’s (DP) victory in the March 2022 presidential election, their spokesmen said in a joint press briefing. They confirmed that they are rivals in good faith as well as partners.    
  

This is actually a really brilliant move by the conservative opposition party in Korea because it demonstrates that the old guard many Koreans are fed up with is transitioning power to the younger generation:

The election of a young new leader is giving a boost to the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), with it seeing the highest gains in support in years and positive signs of a potential “conservative big tent” to counter the liberal ruling bloc ahead of next March’s presidential election. 

Public attention to the rise of the 36-year-old Lee Jun-seok and his victory at the party convention is pushing the party’s support rate. According to a survey of 2,512 adults conducted last week by local pollster Realmeter, and released Monday, 39.1 percent of respondents said they supported the PPP, while 29.2 percent said were behind the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK)

Political watchers believe the PPP has succeeded in responding to the growing public calls for change and innovation in politics by electing the youngest-ever party chairman, and it is now being recognized by the public as an alternative political force that could hold the supermajority DPK in check. Even before Lee’s rise, the DPK was already losing public support due to corruption and land speculation scandals involving high-profile government officials and party members.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Yoon’s popularity as a presidential hopeful continues to grow:

Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl saw his support rating reach a fresh record high in the latest poll of potential presidential candidates released Thursday, amid signs of his imminent political debut.

In the Realmeter survey on 2,013 voters nationwide conducted from Monday to Tuesday, 35.1 percent picked Yoon as their most favored candidate for next year’s presidential election, up 4.6 percentage points from last month.

It is the highest support that Yoon has received in Realmeter’s monthly poll, outnumbering the previous high of 34.4 percent tallied in March.

Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung, affiliated with the ruling Democratic Party (DP), came in second with 23.1 percent, losing 2.4 percentage points of support compared to last month.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is what people who attended a meeting with President Moon are claiming he said:

President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday expressed skepticism over the idea of a big joint military drill by Korea and the United States this year — after Washington supplies Covid-19 vaccines to Korean troops.    
   
Moon had a luncheon with leaders of five political parties at the Blue House Wednesday to discuss last week’s summit with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House, where the two leaders reached a series of agreements on economic cooperation and a vaccine partnership.    
   
Chairman Song Young-gil of the ruling Democratic Party (DP), Acting Chairman and Floor Leader Kim Gi-hyeon of the People Power Party (PPP), Justice Party Chairman Yeo Yeong-gug, People’s Party Chairman Ahn Cheol-soo and Open Minjoo Party Chairman Choe Kang-wook attended the meeting, accompanied by their spokesmen.    
   
“Considering the Covid-19 situation, wouldn’t it be hard to hold a large-scale military exercise?” Moon was quoted as saying by Justice Party spokesman Lee Dong-yeong. “The United States will also make a decision taking into account North Korea-U.S. relations.”    
   
According to Lee, Moon made the remarks in response to Justice Party Chairman Yeo ‘s proposal that a Korea-U.S. joint military exercise scheduled for August be canceled or delayed to revive inter-Korean talks.   

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

With Yoon’s name out of the headlines since he resigned as prosecutor general, it makes sense that his polling numbers would begin to drop:

Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung has overtaken Yoon Seok-youl, the former prosecutor general, for the first time in a hypothetical two-way presidential hopeful poll released Friday. 

In a survey conducted by Gallup Korea on 1,007 adults nationwide from Tuesday to Wednesday, 42 percent picked Gov. Lee, affiliated with the ruling Democratic Party (DP), as their favored candidate for the next presidential election slated for March 2022. 

Yoon, who has led the presidential hopefuls’ race in various polls, fell to second place, with 35.1 percent support.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Apparently some residents don’t want President Moon to retire to their small community in South Gyeongsang Province:

Construction of President Moon Jae-in’s post-presidency residence has been halted recently faced with resistance from residents of the area, according to Cheong Wa Dae sources Thursday. 

Moon and first lady Kim Jung-sook plan to relocate to Habuk, a small town in the rural city of Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, after retiring in May 2022. They purchased a 2,630-square-meter property in the area for 1.06 billion won ($870,000) last year. 

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link, but supposedly the villagers are concerned by increased traffic from his residence, but I suspect the opposition is more for political reasons.

Here are some interesting survey results from Koreans who voted in the Seoul and Busan mayoral elections that were decisive defeats for President Moon’s ruling Democratic Party:

Only three percent felt the PPP won because of its policies, another three percent because voters supported the individual candidate, and a measly one percent attributed the victory to the main opposition’s accomplishments in the National Assembly. Even among PPP supporters, 81 percent admitted that the party won because of the ruling party’s mistakes.

Some 43 percent blamed the Minjoo Party’s failed real-estate policies for its defeat, followed by its refusal to admit its mistakes (18 percent), railroading through of unpopular policies (15 percent) and lack of remorse over the sexual harassment scandals that ousted the former Seoul and Busan mayors (10 percent).

Some 46 percent said the vote was only a warning to Cheong Wa Dae and the ruling party, but the same proportion said voters have completely turned their backs on President Moon Jae-in and the MP, so it remains to be seen how these ambivalent sentiments play out in the presidential election next year.

Chosun Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

It wasn’t all that long ago when the ruling Democratic Party were smug and seemed unbeatable. That is no longer the case:

 After his Democratic Party (DP) suffered an election rout, President Moon Jae-in stated Thursday that he takes it as a “reprimand” from the public.

He said he will carry out his duties with a “humble demeanor and heavy sense of responsibility,” according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok.

Moon was quoted as adding that he will concentrate efforts on meeting the people’s “desperate demands,” including overcoming the COVID-19 crisis, revitalizing the economy, stabilizing the people’s livelihoods and the real estate market, and rooting out corruption.

The liberal DP was overwhelmingly defeated by the conservative main opposition People Power Party in the Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections the previous day.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This is not a good sign for the ruling party and President Moon who’s policies have become increasingly unpopular in South Korea:

Oh Se-hoon of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) is expected to win the Seoul mayoral seat by a solid margin in Wednesday’s by-elections, seen as a major bellwether for next year’s presidential election, an exit poll showed.

Oh defeated his rival from the ruling Democratic Party (DP) Park Young-sun 59 percent to 37.7 percent in the exit poll, jointly released by three broadcasters: KBS, MBC and SBS.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Remember how popular President Moon was a few years ago, well now his own party members do not want much to do with him:

Amid declining approval ratings for President Moon Jae-in especially following public anger over property speculation scandals involving public officials, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and its candidates running in next week’s Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections are keeping the Moon administration at arm’s length, with some even criticizing its policy failures including its real estate drive.

This trend of erasing any vestiges of an unpopular state leader among the ruling side is raising speculation that they would accelerate Moon’s descent into a “lame-duck” presidency after the April 7 by-elections. Moon’s term is scheduled to end in May 2022. 

According to a Gallup Korea survey last week, Moon’s approval rating dropped to its lowest point at 34 percent, along with the highest disapproval rating at 59 percent, due mainly to his administration’s poor real estate policy that has failed to curb skyrocketing housing prices across the nation. 

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.