Yoon Suk-yeol says ‘100% renewable energy not possible’

Presidential nominee Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party claimed Thursday that it was impossible to transition to 100 percent renewable energy sources, adding that traditional sources of energy must be maintained as well in working toward sustainable growth. During a TV debate held among four major presidential candidates, Yoon said the initiative of RE100, which entails committing to use 100 percent renewable energy by 2050, is impossible to achieve, as the demand for energ

Feb. 3, 2022

Lee attacks Yoon over supplementary budget

Lee Jae-myung, the presidential nominee of the ruling Democratic Party, spent most the seven-minute open topic segment given to him attacking and questioning his key rival Yoon Suk-yeol at the first live broadcast debate for key presidential candidates on Thursday. Regarding pandemic-related supplementary budget to help damaged small business owners, Lee denounced Yoon, saying that he suggested 35 trillion won, but only with "conditions," such as "only if I am elected," or

Feb. 3, 2022

Lee Jae-myung strongly distances self from Moon Jae-in, denounces his failures

Presidential nominee Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea firmly distanced himself from the Moon Jae-in administration, accusing it of being reckless and failing to address the difficulties of Koreans during the pandemic. During a TV debate held Thursday among four major presidential candidates, Lee said the Moon administration had made small business owners shoulder the burden of taking care of the public. "Even at this very moment, somebody out there is dying,"

Feb. 3, 2022

Moon asks National Assembly to swiftly approve extra budget bill

President Moon Jae-in on Thursday asked the National Assembly to swiftly approve an extra budget bill designed to help support small merchants hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, a presidential spokesperson said. The budget proposal of 14 trillion won ($11.8 billion) was submitted to the National Assembly last month. Moon told a meeting with senior aides that "speed is vital" for the extra budget because it aims to provide emergency support to small merchants, according to president

Feb. 3, 2022

Lee Jae-myung's wife under fire for 'gapjil'

The wife of presidential nominee Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea is under fire for possibly abusing her status while her husband served in his gubernatorial post, prior to announcing his presidential bid. Lee's wife, Kim Hye-kyung, has faced allegations of having made indirect orders for a Gyeonggi Provincial Government official to deliver food and fetch prescribed medicine for herself while her husband served as the governor for the province until October 2021. Local med

Feb. 3, 2022

Lee, Yoon neck-and-neck at 40.4% vs. 38.5%: poll

Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung is running neck and neck with his main opposition rival, Yoon Suk-yeol, at 40.4 percent support against Yoon's 38.5 percent, a poll showed Thursday. Lee of the liberal Democratic Party gained 5.1 percentage points from the pollster's previous survey on Jan. 8-10, and Yoon of the conservative People Power Party edged up 0.5 point, according to the survey of 1,012 adults conducted by Hangil Research on Wednesday. The gap between Lee and Yoon was

Feb. 3, 2022

[Voters &] Will swing voters bother to vote?

Kim Ki-hyeon, a 30-year-old salesperson based in Seoul, cast his first ballot in a presidential election in December 2012. That election was won by Park Geun-hye from the conservative Saenuri Party. The first election he ever participated in turned out to be a huge disappointment. His preferred candidate won, but Park was riddled with allegations of corruption, misbehavior and a lackluster performance, and ultimately impeached after hundreds of thousands of people descended upon the Gwanghwamun

Feb. 3, 2022

Shamans and politicians, a relationship bound with uncertainties and insecurities

Shamanism has once again returned to haunt South Korean politics. This time around, People Power Party presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol and his wife have been accused of having a close relationship with religious practitioners and allegedly letting them advising on administrative decisions. Korean shamans’ role is to serve ghosts, predict fortunes and perform exorcisms. Shamans and fortunetellers have been a regular feature in presidential elections since the 1992 election. As uncert

Feb. 2, 2022

Lee, Yoon in dead heat at 35% each: poll

Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung and his main opposition rival Yoon Suk-yeol are in a dead heat at 35 percent support each, a poll showed Friday. Lee of the liberal Democratic Party (DP) gained 1 percentage point from a Jan. 18-20 survey, while Yoon of the conservative People Power Party (PPP) gained 2 points, according to the Gallup Korea poll of 1,000 adults conducted from Tuesday to Thursday. Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate of the minor opposition People's Party,

Jan. 28, 2022

Moon thanks Kazakh president for return of remains of independence fighter

President Moon Jae-in on Friday thanked Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev for last year's return of the remains of a revered Korean independence fighter as they exchanged letters to mark the 30th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties. In August last year, the remains of Hong Beom-do, one of the most revered Korean independence fighters, were laid to rest at Daejeon National Cemetery, after being returned from Kazakhstan. Hong is a historic and highly symbolic figure in Korea's fight

Jan. 28, 2022

Ahn pledges to sign Korea-US nuclear sharing agreement

People Party leader Ahn Cheol-soo promised Friday to push for the signing of a Korea-US nuclear arms sharing agreement in response to the threat of North Korea’s nuclear weaponss if he is elected. “We will defend Korea’s security and peace, the people’s lives and safety against such provocations in collaboration with the international community, and not shy away from resorting to military countermeasures,” Ahn said at the press conference held in the Seoul Foreign

Jan. 28, 2022

Members of Moon's entourage for Middle East visit test positive for COVID-19

A small number of members of President Moon Jae-in's entourage for a visit to the Middle East tested positive for COVID-19 after they returned home, an official at the presidential office said Friday. Moon, who returned home last Saturday from an eight-day trip to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, worked from home for three days until Tuesday in line with the government's containment guidelines. "After returning home and taking PCR tests, a small number of accompanying per

Jan. 28, 2022

[Election 101] TV debates, where the ‘real battle’ takes place

The main opposition People Power Party on Thursday proposed a debate between its candidate Yoon Suk-yeol and Democratic Party of Korea candidate Lee Jae-myung, continuing the ongoing controversy over whether or not a presidential debate would take place ahead of the March election. The proposal, which attempts to bypass a court decision prohibiting the two leading candidates from holding a televised debate without including rivals from minor parties highlights the importance that political par

Jan. 27, 2022

Yoon pledges to overhaul presidential office, working methods

Presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol vowed Thursday to build a new presidential office at the Seoul Government Complex in Gwanghwamun and return the existing Cheong Wa Dae site to the public if he is elected. “If I become president, the existing Cheong Wa Dae will disappear,” People Power Party candidate Yoon said at a press conference. “A new concept of the presidential office will be created with a completely different organizational structure and working methods.” &

Jan. 27, 2022

Top court confirms 2-yr prison term for ex-environment minister in power abuse case

The Supreme Court on Thursday confirmed a two-year prison sentence for a former environment minister of the Moon Jae-in administration, charged with abusing her ministerial power to force ranking officials from the previous administration to resign from public posts. Kim Eun-kyung was indicted on charges of forcing 13 executives at environment ministry-affiliated public institutions who were appointed by the previous Park Geun-hye administration to resign from their seats between 2017 and 2018.

Jan. 27, 2022

NSC expresses strong regret over N. Korea's latest projectile launch

The presidential National Security Council (NSC) held an emergency meeting Thursday and expressed strong regret over North Korea's latest projectile launch, the presidential office said. North Korea fired two apparent short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea earlier in the day, in the North's sixth show of force this month. The standing members of the NSC said it is "very regrettable that North Korea's repeated missile launches are contrary to the request of Korea and the intern

Jan. 27, 2022

PPP proposes Yoon-Lee debate on top of TV debate

The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) proposed Thursday that the two leading presidential candidates hold a one-on-one debate on top of an expanded televised debate. Rep. Sung Il-jong, the party's lead negotiator for arranging TV debates, made the proposal in a press conference at the PPP headquarters, a day after a court stopped the country's three major broadcasters from hosting a one-on-one debate between its candidate Yoon Suk-yeol and ruling Democratic Party (DP) candidate Lee Jae-m

Jan. 27, 2022

‘Tech-driven flexibility’: What are Lee Jae-myung’s plans for pandemic?

South Koreans can expect a mellower third year of the pandemic, enabled by greater use of technology, with Lee Jae-myung in charge, according to the frontwoman for the Democratic Party of Korea presidential candidate’s COVID-19 response team. Rep. Shin Hyun-young, who is leading the ruling Democratic Party of Korea’s COVID-19 emergency response headquarters, told The Korea Herald that “Lee Jae-myung will make the most of technology to allow for a flexible response to t

Jan. 26, 2022

Lee Jae-myung calls to end mudslinging in presidential race

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea’s presidential nominee Lee Jae-myung on Wednesday called for an end to mudslinging, in an apparent bid to improve his stagnant support ratings. Lee declared that he would stop all denunciations of other candidates, as he fears voters are displeased with the presidential race being riddled with accusations and denunciations against one another. "I understand that the people are deeply concerned with the 'negative' moves intensified during the pres

Jan. 26, 2022

Court grants injunction to call off one-on-one debate between Lee, Yoon

The planned televised debate between the two leading presidential candidates has been called off, with a Seoul court granting the injunction filed by Ahn Cheol-soo, a minor opposition candidate who had been excluded from the event. Seoul Western District Court on Wednesday ordered the three local broadcasters not to hold or broadcast a debate for the two presidential candidates leading the race -- Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and Yoon Suk-yeol of the People Power Part

Jan. 26, 2022