Lee Jun-seok's Candidacy Sparks Series of Posts in Dongtan Mom Cafe
Some Suggest Winning Mom Cafe Members' Votes
Recently, Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the Reform New Party, officially announced his candidacy for Hwaseong in Gyeonggi Province. Hwaseong-eun is a region reorganized around Dongtan 2 New Town according to electoral district delineation. The Reform New Party explained that Hwaseong-eun, composed of Dongtan 4-dong and Dongtan 6-9-dong, has over 40% of its voters aged 39 or younger. Especially since many young couples live in this new town, political posts have been appearing on local mom cafes. Mom cafes boast strong influence within the community, leading to evaluations that they could become a main pillar of voter sentiment.
Lee Jun-seok declares candidacy for 'Hwaseong-eun'... "Confidence in the younger generation"
Lee Jun-seok, leader of the Reform New Party, declared his candidacy for Hwaseong in the 22nd National Assembly election on the afternoon of the 4th at Dongtan Lake Park, Jeongjo-ro, Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do. [Image source=Yonhap News]
On the 4th, Lee officially declared his candidacy in the Hwaseong-eun electoral district in Gyeonggi Province. On that day, he held a press conference at Dongtan Lake Park in Hwaseong City and stated, "For Dongtan to develop, someone must shout for Dongtan from the center of Korean politics," adding, "I will make the Dongtan area the economic, educational, and childcare hub of Korea."
He continued, "Despite unfavorable conditions recently, including polls showing low support for the Reform New Party, what I rely on and believe in is confidence in the young generation of Dongtan," appealing for support by saying, "Please give strength to the Reform New Party so that Dongtan can develop again amid the orange wave."
The average age of Hwaseong City residents is 39, making it the youngest city nationwide. Moreover, in 2022, the number of elementary, middle, and high school student transfers even surpassed Gangnam-gu in Seoul, ranking first nationwide. The population is also large. Hwaseong City exceeded one million residents last year, and its total fertility rate was 0.98. The driving forces behind Dongtan's rapid growth in an era of low birthrates and aging include the presence of about 27,000 companies ranging from large corporations to medium and small enterprises, as well as new town development. Given this situation, there is a high possibility that Dongtan New Town will be divided into Hwaseong-eun and Hwaseong-jeong.
Dongtan mom cafes stir up over Lee Jun-seok's candidacy news
Following Lee's candidacy announcement, mom cafes and other local communities have shown mixed reactions. Some netizens expressed negative views such as "Not very welcome," "People who try to divide for votes are not good," and "Is Dongtan an easy target because he failed in Nowon-gu?" On the other hand, there were positive responses like "He left a better impression than expected."
Debates also continued over Lee's pledges. His campaign promises include ▲introducing a pilot project for a national responsibility system for math education ▲establishing a science high school in southern Gyeonggi ▲building a local transportation network near Dongtan Station. Mom cafe members responded with comments like "The education pledges were appealing" and "If Lee Jun-seok is elected, Dongtan's promotion will be done properly." Conversely, some netizens expressed concerns such as "The Yoon Seok-yeol administration has paid a lot of attention to the Seoul Metropolitan Express Train (GTX) and supported the semiconductor belt, so I'm afraid Lee Jun-seok might neglect Dongtan if elected."
Mom cafes are communities where married women living in the same area share household, childcare, and local information. They also discuss various topics such as economy, real estate, and social issues. Especially in Dongtan, one mom cafe has as many as 310,000 members, indicating significant influence. Currently, searching 'Dongtan' on Naver Cafe yields a total of 4,336 cafes. Therefore, there is analysis that capturing the votes of mom cafe members increases the chances of winning in the general election.
Conflicting views on mom cafes... "They have become a power group" vs. "A place for information sharing"
In fact, mom cafes wield tremendous influence. The moment a complaint post appears on a mom cafe, self-employed people or small business owners must prepare for business closure. As mom cafes' influence grows, criticisms that they have become a power group have also emerged.
However, there are still positive functions in terms of information sharing. New mothers can obtain information about childcare and education, share concerns, and communicate through mom cafes. Especially, by leveraging the advantage of living in the same area, activities such as taking care of children in emergencies or sharing large quantities of food are carried out.
There was even a case where a life was saved through a mom cafe. In December 2021, a middle school student suffered a traffic accident that caused rupture of the liver and spleen, leading to hypovolemic shock and a life-threatening condition. At that time, Dongtan mom cafe members and Puru Middle School shared the tragic news and voluntarily donated blood, and fortunately, the student was able to survive.
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