Yoon Meets with Hong Jun-pyo over Dinner... Hong Says "I Didn't Come to Daegu to Become Prime Minister"

Discussion on National Policy and Personnel
Hong Denies Prime Minister Nomination Rumors

President Yoon Suk-yeol is understood to have recently held a dinner meeting with Hong Joon-pyo, the Daegu Mayor who previously served as the ruling party leader and presidential candidate.

According to ruling party officials on the 18th, President Yoon met with Hong on the 16th at a location in Seoul, where they had dinner and discussed future government policy directions and personnel appointments.

Some within the ruling party have mentioned Mayor Hong as a potential candidate for Prime Minister, but it is known that this meeting was not intended for President Yoon to propose a specific position to Mayor Hong.

Mayor Hong also drew a line regarding the Prime Minister candidacy rumors when asked by Asia Economy that morning, stating, "I did not come down to Daegu to become Prime Minister."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Following the April 10 general election defeat, President Yoon is aiming to break through the political deadlock through a major overhaul including changes in government operation methods, personnel reshuffles in aides and the cabinet, and reorganization of the presidential office. It is reported that he sought advice from Mayor Hong regarding appointments such as Prime Minister and Chief of Staff.

The meeting proceeded mainly with President Yoon asking about current political issues and Mayor Hong responding with his convictions.

In particular, Mayor Hong reportedly told President Yoon that a Prime Minister candidate should be an unambitious figure capable of communicating with the opposition party, and that the Chief of Staff should be someone with excellent political acumen who is loyal to the president.

After the April 10 general election, Mayor Hong has repeatedly criticized former People Power Party Emergency Committee Chairman Han Dong-hoon as responsible for the party’s defeat, but he has refrained from making critical remarks about President Yoon.

On the previous day, when criticism posts about President Yoon and former Chairman Han related to the election defeat were posted on 'Cheongnyeon-ui Kkum' (Youth’s Dream), a communication channel operated by Mayor Hong, he responded by saying, "Still, didn’t President Yoon win the presidential and local elections?"