DP's Lee Jae-myung to run for parliamentary seat in Korea's by-elections

Lee Jae-myung, defeated presidential candidate of the ruling Democratic Party (DP), announced he will run for a parliamentary seat in the by-elections next month.

Lee Jae-myung, defeated presidential candidate of the ruling Democratic Party (DP), waves to the crowd in Gyeyang District, Incheon, on Sunday, as he holds a press conference to announce he will run for a parliamentary seat representing the constituency in the by-elections next month. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Lee Jae-myung, defeated presidential candidate of the ruling Democratic Party (DP), announced he will run for a parliamentary seat in the by-elections next month.

In a press conference in Gyeyang District, Incheon, Lee said Sunday, "After deep deliberation, I decided to make a dangerous head-on breakthrough to lend my support to the DP, which is in crisis, and lead the party to victory in the difficult local elections."

The DP on Saturday selected Lee to run for the National Assembly seat representing Incheon's Gyeyang-B district in the by-elections to be held concurrently with the June 1 local elections.

The seat was left vacant by former DP Chairman Song Young-gil, who declared he will run for Seoul mayor.

Lee, a former governor of Gyeonggi and special adviser to the DP, has been keeping a low profile after he lost to Yoon Suk-yeol of the conservative People Power Party (PPP) by 0.73 percentage points in the March 9 presidential election.

Making his official return to politics just two months after his election defeat, Lee said in his Sunday press conference, "I will make Gyeyang Incheon's Silicon Valley, overflowing with creative talents and new jobs, an undisputed No. 1 in politics and economics."

He pledged to make Gyeyang successful as a high-tech industries hub, based off of the experience of the Pangyo Techno Valley in Seongnam, Gyeonggi.

Lee admitted he was initially reluctant to make such a quick return to politics after his recent defeat.

"Considering my political security, I received a lot of advice to distance myself from the local elections, and it is true that I, too, was negative in regards to an early return," said Lee. "However, it was impossible to ignore the difficulties faced by the party amid the precarious local election situation."

He added that the "excessive slander and coercive attacks" from the opposition People Power Party (PPP) also "factored into the decision" to run in the upcoming race.

Lee said he will give his all for a victory in Incheon and then lead his party "to a majority victory nationwide."

Though Lee served as Seongnam mayor from 2010 to 2018 and Gyeonggi governor for 2018 to October 2021, he has never served as a lawmaker.

Some PPP lawmakers accused Lee of aiming for arrest immunity through a parliamentary seat, as under law, lawmakers cannot be arrested or detained while the National Assembly is in session without parliamentary consent. Lee has been accused of being involved in a land development project scandal in Daejang-dong, Seongnam, during his time as mayor of the city. He has denied such allegations.

Ahn Cheol-soo, chairman of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's transition team, holds a press conference at the National Assembly in western Seoul on Sunday to announce he will run for a parliamentary seat representing the Bundang-A district in Seongnam, Gyeonggi, in next month’s by-elections. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

There are seven constituencies up for grabs in the parliamentary by-elections.

Ahn Cheol-soo, chairman of President-elect Yoon's transition team, also officially declared Sunday he will run in the upcoming parliamentary by-elections to aid his party's election victory in the metropolitan area.

In a press conference at the National Assembly, Ahn said, "I will give my everything to lay the foundation for the success of the new government by winning not only in Bundang, but also in Seongnam, Gyeonggi, and the metropolitan area."

The software mogul-turned-politician will run for a seat in Gyeonggi's Bundang-A district in Seongnam. He initially revealed his bid for the parliamentary seat Friday to reporters.

This seat was left empty by Yoon's former transition spokesperson, Kim Eun-hye, who is running for Gyeonggi governor in the June 1 local elections against Kim Dong-yeon, a former finance minister.

In a direct attack on Lee, Ahn said, "The residents of Bundang and Seongnam are the actual economic victims of the legal and moral corruption of the former mayor and governor, and they are living with painful disgrace."

He added that there has to be a "leadership change in Bundang, Seongnam and Gyeonggi."

Ahn said that Bundang is his "second hometown," noting that AhnLab, the antivirus software company he founded in 1995, is headquartered there.

"I expected the development potential of the location and built the AhnLab office building before anyone else, when nobody took a second glance," said Ahn. "I am the first generation of the IT industry and a leader of the first generation of start-up ventures. I am the best person to further expand and increase the future value of Bundang by utilizing the infrastructure and talents of our region."

Ahead of the March 9 election, Ahn, then head of the minor opposition People's Party, agreed to end his third presidential campaign and support Yoon's. They also agreed to merge their parties after the election.

Last month, the PPP and Ahn's People's Party merged. However, Ahn did not take any positions in Yoon's new Cabinet, leading to speculations he might run in the upcoming election instead.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]