On May 15, presidential candidate Lee Jun-seok of the Reform Party speaks at the meeting of the Korean Association of Elementary School Teachers, held at the Seoul Station Space Moa, to express hopes that a tragedy like the Seo Yi-cho incident never happens again. /Courtesy of News1

Lee Jun-seok, presidential candidate from the Reform Party, claimed on the 15th, "Lee Jae-myung (Democratic Party of Korea presidential candidate) will go down the same path as former Presidents Moon Jae-in and Yoon Seok-youl, who focused solely on expelling opposing forces from the beginning of their terms."

On the same day, the candidate met with reporters after a meeting with the Korean Federation of Elementary School Teachers' Associations at the Hanil Building in Jung-gu, Seoul, and said, "Former President Moon deployed Prosecutor Yoon Seok-youl and Prosecutor Han Dong-hoon immediately after taking office, leading to extreme confrontation and giving up power in five years. Former President Yoon also focused only on highlighting Lee Jae-myung's judicial risk, reducing the space for cooperation, and was ultimately impeached."

Recently, the Democratic Party of Korea has claimed that Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae exerted undue pressure during the process of remanding Lee Jae-myung's election law case with a 'guilty intent.' In response, critics from the conservative camp have accused the Democratic Party of Korea of pressuring the judiciary to protect Lee Jae-myung.

The candidate stated, "If I become president, I will not be obsessed with 'cleansing the old evils' and will focus on nurturing Korea's Mirae Industries and talent from day one."

In response to criticisms regarding his low favorability, the candidate said, "As a third-party candidate subject to checks from both parties, I can only receive a high unfavorable rating. The People Power Party may use this as an opportunity to pressure for unification, but I will not back down."

Earlier, a survey conducted by Gallup Korea at the request of News1 asked 1,002 men and women over the age of 18 nationwide about their 'favorability of major presidential candidates' on the 12th and 13th, revealing that candidate Lee Jun-seok had the lowest favorability at 28%. Candidate Lee Jae-myung ranked first with 48%, while Kim Moon-soo, the People Power Party presidential candidate, came in second with 35%.