An Cheol-soo, Hong Joon-pyo, Oh Se-hoon can cooperate, but common sense is a prerequisite.
Lee Jun-seok, the presidential candidate of the Reform Party, asserted, “I have no intention of responding to the simplistic political engineering of ‘1+1=2’ and unreasonable unification” while drawing a clear line against the discussions on a big tent unification within the conservative camp.
During a debate invited by the Kwanhun Club, held at the Korea Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 30th, candidate Lee said, “I cannot work with those responsible for martial law and early presidential elections,” emphasizing that “holding hands with them is something that neither public common sense nor my pride would allow.”
He also touched upon the fundamental limitations of a big tent unification. “Aiming merely to oppose a specific individual will not succeed, and it’s a humble goal compared to our capabilities and ideals,” he remarked. Addressing the existing political circle, he asserted, “A big tent that’s merely another factional fight cannot accommodate the future,” and added, “This upcoming early presidential election should be an entirely new starting point.”
Lee also outlined specific policy plans, proposing local decentralization and the reduction of government organizations as part of his policy vision. “I’ll reduce 19 government ministries to 13,” he stated, explaining that overlapping functions and ministries that have lost their relevance would be consolidated and reorganized into practical-focused organizations. Furthermore, he mentioned, “I’ll allocate over 30% of corporate tax to local regions and allow minimum wages to be decided autonomously by regions,” describing this approach as “a significant first step toward overwhelming local decentralization.”
Education policy was also highlighted as a key agenda. He emphasized the restoration of teacher authority and the establishment of schools that foster social mobility, stating, “We’ll reform the collapsed education scene with measures like the National Responsibility System for Teacher Affiliation, strengthening penalties for false accusations, and implementing a detention system.”
Regarding the fiscal pledges recently presented competitively by various presidential candidates, he strongly criticized them. Lee said, “One side claims to invest 100 trillion won in AI, while the other talks about investing 200 trillion like a gamble,” insisting “These populism competitions acting as if national funds are petty cash must stop.”
For youth policy, he proposed offering low-interest loans of up to 50 million won to young people who did not attend college, aiming to ensure fairness with student loans.
He emphasized, “I am a generation that grew with competence, not ideology,” and advocated that like Kennedy, Obama, Macron, and Blair, who reformed their countries through generational shifts, it is time for Korea to opt for change.
Lastly, he affirmed, “The big tent I want to create is one of science, technology, principles, and common sense,” and expressed his aspiration to build a collaborative big tent with “An Cheol-soo’s integrative thinking, Hong Joon-pyo’s driving force, and Oh Se-hoon’s communication skills.”