The Reason Lee Jae-myung, Who Wanted to Debate Yoon Seok-yeol, Is Not Debating Han Dong-hoon

Differences in Lee's Words Between Presidential Candidate Days and Now
May Give a Relatively 'Old' Impression
Lee Jun-seok "Korea, Knowing Yet Still Proposes Debate to Lee"

"Avoiding it means not doing politics."

Did Han Dong-hoon, the Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, say this? It is similar to what Chairman Han said recently when Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, refused a one-on-one debate. However, this was something Lee said back in late December 2021 when he was the Democratic Party's presidential candidate.

At that time, Lee clashed head-on with Yoon Seok-youl, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, over holding a TV debate. It was the exact opposite situation from now. Lee repeatedly urged Yoon to have a debate. Yoon appeared on a YouTube channel then and said, "If we debate, it only leads to fights," adding, "From the public's perspective, when choosing the highest decision-maker of this country's government, verifying that person's way of thinking and such, having many policy debates doesn't seem very helpful." Lee responded, "The process of having a debate, persuading each other, and compromising is itself a form of conflict, and avoiding this means not doing politics," and directly criticized, "I watched the video (of Yoon), and I thought politics is not like that."

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking as he meets Cho Kuk, leader of the Innovation Party, who visited the National Assembly on the 5th to offer congratulations on his inauguration. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

About two years and three months later, Lee's stance has changed 180 degrees. He effectively rejected Chairman Han's request for a TV debate by saying, "Dialogue with President Yoon comes first." Why did Lee change his position?

① It only elevates Han Dong-hoon's status

If Lee debates this time, he would be acknowledging that he is on the same level as Chairman Han. Although Han is the Emergency Response Committee Chairman and holds a party leader-level position, he is a temporary party leader, not elected through a party convention. From Lee's perspective, actually debating would only raise the political status of Han, who has been in politics for only a couple of months. Political commentator Park Sang-byeong said, "Lee hasn't even had a talk with President Yoon, so debating with Chairman Han would lower Lee's own status," adding, "From Lee's side, it doesn't look good."

Handonghun, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, is attending the Emergency Response Committee meeting held at the Central Party Office in Yeouido, Seoul on the 4th. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

② Disadvantageous in image confrontation

In political circles, the prevailing view is that if a debate occurs, Lee would be at a disadvantage compared to Chairman Han in terms of speech style, attire, and overall content. Having already exhausted much of his image through the presidential election, Lee inevitably gives off a 'worn-out' impression. There is likely to be increased interest in what questions the relatively less-known Chairman Han might ask Lee.

③ Possibility of blurring the confrontation with Yoon

For Lee, it is advantageous to maintain the confrontation with President Yoon. Lee lost the last presidential election by the smallest margin ever, 0.73 percentage points, and if this rivalry continues into the general election, it can be linked to a 'regime judgment theory.' The confrontation between Lee and Chairman Han disrupts this. Although Han previously took a stance against President Yoon regarding remarks about First Lady Kim Keon-hee, he has experience solidifying his position as chairman. Um Kyung-young, director of the Era Spirit Research Institute, pointed out, "In every aspect?appearance, speech, sense, facial expressions?Chairman Han and Lee are contrasting," adding, "Especially the dynamic of a prosecutor versus a suspect is a clear comparison." A ruling party official said, "Although Chairman Han is a newcomer, he doesn't seem like one, so Lee's side might find it burdensome to face him."

Because of this, there is an analysis that Chairman Han is deliberately repeating debate proposals, knowing Lee will not accept. Lee Jun-seok, leader of the Reform New Party, said in a CBS radio interview that "Chairman Han seems to be intentionally ignoring (Lee)," adding, "Since Lee is politically vulnerable recently and there are many points to attack during the nomination process, Han proposed the debate knowing Lee would refuse."