Yoon, Asked About 'Narrow Margin,' Says "I've Forgotten All Voting Results... Never Engaged in Gender Divide"

"Misunderstood and Attacked During Voting Process"
"No Reason to Divide"
"For National Unity and Regional Sentiment Solutions, We Must Unite for Fair and Balanced Development"

President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol is holding a press conference to greet his election victory on the morning of the 10th at the National Assembly Library in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Jung-wan] President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol stated at a press conference on the 10th, "Well, I forgot everything after seeing the election results yesterday," and asserted, "And I have never divided people by gender or sex."

At his first press conference held after his victory greeting in the main auditorium of the National Assembly Library that morning, President-elect Yoon responded to reporters' questions about the analysis that the narrow victory margin, smaller than expected within the party, was due to a successful gender division strategy, asking how he plans to lead toward unity.

President-elect Yoon replied, "During the election process, I was misunderstood and attacked in that way, but what reason would there be to divide people by male and female gender?" He added, "There is no such thing, so please do not misunderstand. Rather, I have always thought that doing so is the way to protect women more safely and strongly."

Regarding gender conflict, he stated, "I have consistently believed that the issue of male and female duality is less about collective equality or parity, but since laws and systems have been established to some extent, it is important for the state to take an interest in and strongly report and respond to individual unfair cases."

On questions about regional sentiment, President-elect Yoon emphasized, "The way to resolve national unity and our regional sentiment issues is that we must unite our efforts so that all regions can develop fairly and balanced." He added, "The presidential election is over. There is no reason to look back on the election results anymore, and only the path forward with the people remains."

Earlier, President-elect Yoon faced criticism for engaging in gender division to gain votes from young male supporters by announcing pledges such as the 'abolition of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and establishment of a separate ministry' and 'strengthening of false accusation laws.'

At the final presidential candidate TV debate hosted by the National Election Commission on the 2nd, when Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party candidate, asked, "Do you still believe there is no structural gender discrimination and that it is an individual issue?" President-elect Yoon responded, "Whether female or male, when someone suffers from a crime or receives unfair treatment, our community must respond strongly and correct that."

Meanwhile, the Korean Women's Associations United (KWAU) stated in a press release on the 10th, "Pledges such as the establishment of false accusation laws related to sexual violence and the abolition of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family must be withdrawn," and added, "The responsibility to recognize structural discrimination and actively work toward its resolution has been given to President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol." KWAU is a coalition of 27 women's organizations including the Korean Sexual Violence Counseling Center, Korean Women's Minwoo Association, and Korean Women's Hotline.

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