'There Has Never Been a Presidential Election Like This'... An Election Where Ideology and Policy Disappear, Following Only the Candidates' Words

①The Grand Promises Disappear, Instant Pledge Actions Increase by Each Candidate
②Ruling and Opposition Parties Use Lawsuits Entirely as a Strategy
③Candidates' Families and Associates Draw More Attention Than the Candidates Themselves

[Asia Economy Reporters Naju-seok and Geum Bo-ryeong] With 50 days remaining until this presidential election, it is being held amid unprecedented circumstances. Events that were considered 'abnormal' under traditional political norms have been disguised as normal. Parties that share ideology and policies have disappeared from the center of the election, leaving only the candidates’ mouths moving fiercely. Unprecedented levels of legal disputes have become routine, and the strange phenomenon of those around the candidates receiving more attention than the candidates themselves is growing stronger over time.

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, is announcing six major pledges for a job revolution at the central party office in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 18th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

◆The ‘party’ that creates pledges disappears= Typically, presidential election pledges are created as follows. During the party primary stage, presidential candidates prepare the broad outlines of their pledges. Once officially selected as candidates, the campaign combines detailed pledges developed at the campaign level with systematically created pledges from the party. This election has seen the disappearance of such a process. For example, Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate and former local government head, is known to have instructed that proposals coming through various channels be reviewed on the spot as pledges. As a result, the party appears confused, merely watching the candidate’s statements.

The People Power Party (PPP) is in a similar situation. It is difficult to find the party’s role regarding pledges. Although a presidential pledge development team was formed in September last year, actual pledges are announced centered on the campaign and the party leader. Even after Kim Do-eup, the policy committee chairman who should have been focused on preparing party-level pledges, expressed his intention to resign due to internal party conflicts, discussions on his successor have yet to accelerate.

Because the party fails to set policy directions and merely follows the candidate’s remarks, pledges that contradict the party’s traditional line frequently appear. Lee’s ‘capital gains tax relief for multi-homeowners’ is a representative example. In the case of the PPP, presidential candidate Yoon Seok-youl reversed the party’s stance 180 degrees by supporting the labor director system in public institutions. Originally a Moon Jae-in presidential pledge, the PPP had opposed it, saying, "If the presidential candidate says something, does that mean the National Assembly has no meaning?" Mistakes surrounding pledges have also become frequent. For example, candidate Yoon mistakenly announced Incheon Station as Dowon Station while pledging to underground the Gyeongin Line, and used the incorrect term ‘juvenile diabetes’ for type 1 diabetes. A key figure who served in the campaign headquarters lamented, "We expected a policy-based election, but it has become a negative slander battle."

◆A presidential election rife with lawsuits= Rather than pledges or policies, issues such as candidate morality and the candidates’ spouses and associates have been highlighted, leading to lawsuits across the board?another characteristic of this election. Just the day before, the PPP filed complaints with the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office against Kang Jin-gu, a reporter for Open Sympathy TV, Kim Eo-jun, host of TBS’s Kim Eo-jun’s News Factory, and related personnel for false information disclosure and candidate defamation under the Public Official Election Act and defamation under the Information and Communications Network Act, related to reports on candidate Yoon’s spouse Kim Geon-hee’s phone calls. The MBC ‘Straight’ production team was also reported for false information disclosure and candidate defamation under the Public Official Election Act. Baek Eun-jong, CEO of Seoul Voice, Lee Myung-soo, and Jung Cheon-su, CEO of Open Sympathy TV, were reported for trespassing and violation of the Communications Privacy Protection Act.

On the same day, the Democratic Party filed a complaint against Kim Ki-hyun, floor leader of the PPP, for ‘indirect murder’ remarks related to the death of Mr. Lee, who first raised suspicions about Lee’s lawyer fee payments. In addition, the Democratic Party has filed complaints against 66 PPP lawmakers who raised allegations of Lee’s eldest son’s fraudulent admission and former lawmaker Kim Jin-tae, who brought up ‘gangster involvement’ rumors about Lee.

Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, is attending and speaking at a meeting held at the Social Workers Association in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul on the 18th. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

Both sides are engaging in a barrage of ‘take it or leave it’ lawsuits, with each campaign referring to this as a ‘strategy.’ A campaign official said, "To avoid losing on pressing issues, we have no choice but to follow the legal procedures. After the election, both sides may withdraw lawsuits through coordination, but it is uncertain how this election will unfold." A political insider expressed concern, saying, "This may be the presidential election with the most lawsuits in history."

◆Associates receiving more attention than candidates= After candidate Lee was selected as the presidential candidate, the person who attracted the most attention was not the candidate but former Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yeon. More interest was focused on Lee’s wife Kim Hye-kyung, who lost consciousness and injured her eyebrow, and Lee’s son, who committed illegal gambling, than on the candidate himself. In candidate Yoon’s case, former PPP general election committee chairman Kim Jong-in and party leader Lee Jun-seok attracted greater attention. Whether PPP lawmaker Hong Joon-pyo will support candidate Yoon, like former Democratic leader Lee Nak-yeon, is also receiving significant attention. Especially, candidate Yoon’s wife Kim has become the center of controversy after false career allegations and making disparaging remarks about the #MeToo movement during over 50 phone calls with journalists affiliated with a YouTube channel.