‘Big Three’ focus on social welfare policy as they outline platforms

Lee Sung-yoon, chief of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office, was indicted Wednesday over allegations that he exercised undue influence in 2019 to stop an inquiry into the allegedly illegal exit ban imposed on a former senior official. The decision by the Suwon District Prosecutors Office came two days after an indictment was recommended by an independent panel created to review the validity of an ongoing investigation into Lee. Lee is accused of abusing his power in June 2019 to bloc

Cho Hee-yeon accused of abusing power in recruitment of teachers

The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) plans to send a delegation to the United States this week to discuss bilateral cooperation related to COVID-19 vaccines, party officials said Tuesday. PPP Rep. Park Jin and Rep. Choi Hyung-du will travel to the US on Wednesday to meet with Washington officials, legislature representatives and think tank figures to explore means of cooperation regarding coronavirus vaccines, including the possibility of a South Korea-US vaccine swap arrangement, accor

President Moon Jae-in on Monday said he would not be pressed by time in reviving the collapsed diplomacy with North Korea but pledged last-ditch efforts to make a breakthrough in the remaining year of his presidency. “If there is a will, there is a way. It is the aspiration of 80 million Koreans to end the era of confrontation and conflict on the Korean Peninsula and usher in an era of peace and prosperity,” the president said in a speech marking his fourth year in office. His ter

Following Rep. Park’s announcement, ‘Big Three’ and other figures gear up for election

Five-term legislator and ex-South Gyeongsang Province Governor Rep. Hong Joon-pyo said Monday he will take steps to return to the main opposition party. "I think it's time to return to the (People Power) Party," Hong, currently an independent based in the southern city of Daegu, said in a press conference at the National Assembly. The lawmaker said he will soon submit an application for party membership and take other necessary steps. Last year, Hong defected from the main oppositi

President Moon Jae-in's approval rating has seen a slight rebound from last week's record-low figure according to a poll released Monday, the fourth anniversary of his inauguration. In a four-day weekday poll by Realmeter on 2,015 voters nationwide conducted last week except on the Children's Day holiday, Moon gained support from 36 percent of respondents, up 3 percentage points from the all-time low of 33 percent recorded the previous week. Moon's disapproval rating fell 2.3 percentage point

President Moon Jae-in on Monday agreed to modify some of his real estate policies, calling them a main reason for voters' "severe punishment" for his party in recent local by-elections. "(My government) has failed to achieve the aim of stabilizing property prices and (the party) received a severe punishment for that," Moon said during a press conference at Cheong Wa Dae held to mark the fourth anniversary of his inauguration. He picked the real estate problem when asked by

Park Yong-jin, a two-term lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party, announced Sunday he will run for president in next year's election, becoming the first person to officially declare his candidacy. "I will achieve a change of era in the Republic of Korea through a generational change in politics," the 50-year-old said during a press conference held on the National Assembly compounds. "I will create a happy nation and become a courageous and young president who stands up against

Presidential hopefuls of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) are competing to woo support from young voters in the run-up to next year's election, as the party tries to recover lost confidence from 20- and 30-something voters as seen in its crushing defeat in last month's by-elections. Rep. Lee Nak-yon, former prime minister and the DP's previous chairman, on Thursday proposed funneling state tax money procured from owners of high-priced homes, commonly referred to as the comprehensive real estate

A presidential secretary on Friday offered to resign over allegations that he awarded public projects worth millions to his private firm while serving as a senior official at the Seoul city government. The resignation offer by Jun Hyo-kwan, a presidential secretary for cultural affairs, came amid the allegations, raised by an opposition lawmaker, that his private company received a total of 12 orders worth 5.1 billion won ($4.5 million) from the Seoul city government from 2014-2018. During the

The ruling party’s presidential hopefuls have begun talking about giving money to young people who completed their military duties, young people who do not own homes and even newborns. The opposition has decried them as populist pledges. Former Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yon proposed on Thursday, “let’s spend the comprehensive real estate holding tax revenue collected from owners of multiple homes for residential stability of young people without homes and one-person hou

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon hired a conservative YouTuber in his 20s as his new secretary for press affairs, a move concerning to some as a sign that the mayoral office could be swayed into certain political stance under Oh’s rule. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Thursday that the YouTuber was hired as a “message secretary” under the mayor’s office. The new hire is in charge of drafting speeches and other press materials to be released from Oh’s office until his

A political standoff between the ruling and main opposition parties appeared imminent Thursday, as key National Assembly committees were scheduled to decide on the parliamentary approvals of scandal-ridden minister nominees recently picked by President Moon Jae-in. Earlier this week, parliamentary confirmation hearings on nominees for science, oceans, land, trade and labor ministers were carried out by the National Assembly. Of those, Lim Hye-sook, Park Jun-young and Noh Hyeong-ouk, nominees f