By Kang Hyun-kyung
A recent poll projects that nearly half of voters don’t want Ahn Cheol-soo, the Seoul National University (SNU) professor, to join the presidential election.
Pollsters say some of them are Ahn’s fans, who are concerned about possible negative fallout on his career if he runs and is defeated.
The Naeil Shinmun poll released earlier this week showed that 47.8 percent of respondents said they believed the entrepreneur shouldn’t run in the presidential election as a candidate.
His presidential bid is supported by 48.3 percent, showing that the number of supporters of a potential Ahn presidential bid is almost equal to the number that would oppose his candidacy, if announced.
The survey, which was taken by 800 people from Aug. 31 to Sept. 1, has a margin of error of plus and minus 3.5 percentage points.
Yoon Hee-woong, a senior researcher of the polling agency Korea Society Opinion Institute, said some of the opponents are “concerned fans” of the founder of the computer virus vaccine provider AhnLab.
“These people want Ahn to hold on to his current job, instead of running in the presidential election, because they are worried about the consequences he will have to face if his presidential bid turns out to be a failure,” he said.
“It is obvious that the election results will ruin his career and tarnish his image. Therefore some of his supporters, who really cared about him, are negative about his presidential bid because they want him to remain as a respected, successful start-up business leader.”
Ahn is popular among voters in their 20s, 30s, and 40s. Young people prefer him to other politicians as the SNU professor is viewed as “a total package,” who is rich, successful and willing to give back to the community to help underprivileged people.
On campus, analysts said there are plenty of “Ahn wannabees” who want to follow their heart when choosing their career path and be as successful as him.
Meanwhile, surveys found that most people in their 50s or older tend to endorse Rep. Park Geun-hye, the presidential candidate of the ruling Saenuri Party, as the next president.