Candidates depend on distinctive online campaigns

Thae Yong-ho, a former North Korean diplomat who is running in Seoul's Gangnam-A District in the April 15 general election under the name Thae Gu-min, raps in a YouTube video posted Tuesday. / Captured from Thaeyongho TV

By Kang Seung-woo

Candidates running in the April 15 general election are adopting what they hope are eye-catching online campaigns amid the coronavirus pandemic that is limiting offline contacts with voters.

Although campaigning officially began last week, candidates are finding it difficult to appeal to voters on the streets as they used to, as many people are following government guidelines and avoiding outdoor activities to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In addition, even while campaigning in public, candidates and their supporters are wearing face masks, making it harder for people to recognize them ― particularly, political rookies. As a result, they have moved their campaigns online.

Thae Yong-ho, a high-profile North Korean defector running in Seoul's Gangnam-A District on the main opposition United Future Party's (UFP) ticket under the name “Thae Gu-min,” posted a YouTube video, Tuesday, in which he is rapping, wearing a hoodie and a baseball cap ― something unusual for a former North Korean deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom and for people of his age group.

The 50-second video had attracted nearly 10,000 views as of Wednesday afternoon, successfully drawing in the public.

“In order to break the perception that a North Korean defector does not know about South Korean politics, Thae is trying to show his many different sides,” a UFP official said.

Rep. Choi Jae-sung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), in pursuit of a fifth term, is also drawing attention thanks to one of his YouTube videos, in which he “self-disses” his physical appearance. In the footage, Choi says short-legged people are good candidates as short legs are good for sprinting or running around, adding in that sense he is the best fit for an election campaign.

Rep. Woo Won-shik, a former DPK floor leader, posted collected clips of him shedding tears during his legislative activities in an attempt to show his sincerity, while Rep. Oh Shin-hwan of the UFP unveiled a “B-rated” music video in which he pulls various “funny” faces.

“As the people are going through a hard time due to the coronavirus, I created the music video to make them laugh at least for a minute,” Oh said.

While such a young and hip online approach generally works for candidates, some attempts have backfired.

Independent candidate Hong Joon-pyo running in Daegu's Suseong-B District, who quit the UFP after it didn't nominate him last month, created a buzz recently with an Instagram account made for his election campaign, which parodied Park Saeroyi, a main character in “Itaewon Class,” a webcomic that spawned a hit TV series.

The account had an image of Hong looking like the character with his signature hairstyle, along with the written statements “Hong Saeroyi” and “Suseong-B Class.”

The attempt to appeal to younger voters, however, backfired after the original webtoon author said on social media Monday that he did not want his work to be used in the election campaign by any political party, and the Hong camp withdrew it.

Amid the influx of amusing online campaign strategies, political watchers believe such distinctive measures may help candidates gain name recognition, but it remains to be seen if this will turn into votes.