Tving’s ‘Running Mate’ begins the election war for student council president among high school students, which is more intense than college entrance exams.

The Tving original ‘Running Mate’ (directed and written by Han Jin-won, produced by Billions, AceMaker Studio, Running Mate Cultural Industry Professional Corporation, provided by Tving), which will be released on June 19, revealed a main poster on the 26th that anticipates a tense confrontation without compromise. The main trailer, which contains the joys and sorrows of high school students within the student council president election stained with lies, raises curiosity and elevates dopamine levels.

‘Running Mate’ is a high teen cheerful political drama about Sehun Noh (played by Hyun-soo Yoon), who becomes the target of ridicule for the entire school due to an unforeseen incident, being nominated as the vice presidential candidate in the student council presidency election, navigating through various schemes on his way to victory. The drama is expected to offer a unique enjoyment with the burning desires, joys, and sorrows of youth amid the fierce high school student council presidential election, with shining friendships and warm growth stories. In particular, the fantastic synergy created by unique young actors such as Hyun-soo Yoon, Jeong-sik Lee, Woo-sung Choi, Hwa-yeon Hong, Bong-jun Lee, and Ji-woo Kim is sure to excite drama fans.

In the meantime, the released main poster and main trailer indicate an unpredictable and spectacular student council presidential election race. First, under the phrase ‘Election war of high school students fiercer than entrance exams’ in the main poster, the opposing positions of two factions facing each other with a solemn determination are interesting. Amidst the suffocating tension flowing between the candidates, leading the group is presidential candidate Sang-hyun Gwack (played by Jeong-sik Lee), along with Sehun Noh and Jeong-hee Yoon (played by Hwa-yeon Hong) wearing blue ties, while on the opposite side, Won-dae Yang (played by Woo-sung Choi), Ji-hoon Park (played by Bong-jun Lee), and Yu-gyeong Ha (played by Ji-woo Kim) wear red ties and stare at each other. What will be their keys to victory as they each jump into the election race with their justifications? The intense election war, where they must go crazy to win, raises questions about how it will unfold.

The main trailer released alongside hints at a rollercoaster-like month for Sehun Noh, who wanted to live ordinarily, without belonging to either the mainstream or the non-mainstream. Sehun Noh becomes the running mate of the mysterious golden spoon and presidential candidate Sang-hyun Gwack, diving into the election as the male vice presidential candidate. How far will this election, stained with lies, go, where winning means everything? The previously trademark friendly smile is nowhere to be found, and the chilling pressure from Sang-hyun Gwack toward Sehun Noh, saying, ‘Don’t just talk, do something,’ adds to the tension. The sharp confrontation between Gwack’s camp and the passionate presidential candidate Won-dae Yang’s camp raises curiosity about the fierce student council presidential election.

In particular, the conflicts of high school students who declare, ‘Did I commit murder? Or did I commit fraud?’ and ‘If we win, that won’t matter at all,’ after stepping into the student council presidential election make one curious about the conclusion of the fierce election war. The female vice presidential candidate of Gwack’s camp and class top student Jeong-hee Yoon, along with the vice presidential candidate from Yang’s camp, ‘Youngjin High School’s core influencer’ Ji-hoon Park and ‘Youngjin High School’s visual center’ Yu-gyeong Ha, intensify the extreme confrontation between the two camps, amplifying the tension.

‘Running Mate’ is gaining hot interest as it marks the directorial debut of Han Jin-won, co-writer of ‘Parasite,’ who won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. Additionally, Tving, known for its evolved school dramas like ‘After School War Activities,’ ‘Pyramid Game,’ and ‘Study Group’, heightens expectations by releasing a new work that contains the fresh theme of a student council presidential election.

Director Han Jin-won emphasized, ‘Running Mate is not a hero action drama,’ stating, ‘The main character, Sehun Noh, is a delicate, sometimes foolish, and fragile ordinary person. Sehun can be me, and broadly speaking, he can be any of us.’ He also expressed hope that ‘viewers will participate in the story while recalling the most ordinary times in their lives. The charm and differentiation of ‘Running Mate’ is in its ‘special story that the most ordinary of us experience.’

Meanwhile, Tving original ‘Running Mate’ will be fully released on June 19 (Thursday) on Tving.

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