Lee Jun-seok, the presidential candidate from the Reform Party, said on the 9th, "If lawmaker Kim Sang-wook, who left the People Power Party, has similar aspirations, I will support him as a comrade."
On that day, the candidate met with reporters at the Korean Federation of Teachers' Associations in Yangjae-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul, and stated, "I communicate with lawmaker Kim Sang-wook every week. He may have felt disappointed seeing the People Power Party stray further from the conservative reforms he wanted to pursue."
Lawmaker Kim declared his departure from the People Power Party the previous day. He noted, "I have no choice but to accept the painful reality that the People Power Party is in an extreme situation where the possibilities have disappeared," and expressed his desire to meet with presidential candidates such as Lee Jae-myung and Lee Jun-seok to discuss solutions to pressing issues and the direction of the country.
The candidate criticized the internal strife within the People Power Party over the unification between candidates Kim Moon-soo and Han Duck-soo, calling it "an unprecedented drama in a crisis."
He remarked, "It is unfortunate that so much media equity is taken up by the People Power Party's drama," and expressed hope that the turmoil would be resolved quickly so they could present a vision for their policies.
He added, "It is true that my campaign and policies have garnered less interest in this situation, but I believe our approach is quite healthy. The People Power Party's drama may draw attention for a moment, but as time goes on, disappointment will flood in, and we will seize the initiative."
On that day, the candidate met with Kang Joo-ho, chairman of the Korean Federation of Teachers' Associations, to discuss policy demands in the educational field and related promises. The candidate also proposed the "Mathematics National Education Responsibility System" as a presidential pledge, which aims to expand public education in mathematics for elementary and middle school levels.
The key points include conducting annual nationwide mathematics achievement assessments for students from 4th grade to 3rd year of middle school, implementing divided classes based on assessment results, and assigning math specialist assistant teachers to ensure a ratio of one teacher for every five students.
He also announced a pledge to strengthen teachers' rights, stating that the education office would directly represent cases involving civil and criminal lawsuits that arise during teachers' legitimate duties, and that those who make false reports would be punished for false accusations and could face claims for damages. He promised to strengthen the "detention system" to isolate problematic students for discipline instead of corporal punishment.
The candidate stated, "I will ensure that teachers can focus solely on educational activities free from threats like the 'Seoi-cho incident' and that students can develop basic academic skills suitable for the artificial intelligence (AI) era."