From factory worker to ruling party's presidential candidate

Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the ruling liberal Democratic Party of Korea, poses at the party headquarters on Seoul's Yeouido, ahead of a joint interview with The Korea Times, Reuters and the South China Morning Post, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

By Jung Da-min

Lee Jae-myung, 57, the presidential candidate of the ruling liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), is widely known as a “man of strong will,” shown in his strong policy drives that have seen most of his campaign pledges achieved.

Before becoming the ruling party's candidate for the presidential election, he served as governor of Gyeonggi Province, the country's most populated province with about 13.5 million residents.

His popularity as Gyeonggi governor had been the lowest among the 17 governors and mayors across the nation in opinion polls conducted during his first month in office in July 2018. But his straightforwardness when talking about thorny social issues and strong policy drives led him to enjoy high public support, with a rate recording the highest among the 17 regional heads in many opinion polls after June 2020.

His favorability as a potential presidential candidate also started increasing around then, which political watchers attributed to his outspoken leadership style and strong drive in pushing forward with policies, witnessed in his efforts to contain COVID-19 in the province, as well as providing relief funds to all residents separately from the central government.

Lee Jae-myung in 1978, when he was working at a factory manufacturing baseball gloves / Courtesy of Lee's election camp

His dramatic life story, going from being a factory worker to becoming a lawyer and then a resilient politician, is also one of his appealing features.

Born to a poor farming family in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, he became a factory worker after graduating elementary school when his family moved to Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. While working in factories, he sustained many injuries, including one to his left arm which left it permanently bent. While working in factories, he took exams equivalent to earning his middle and high school diplomas.

After managing to enter Chung-Ang University's law department by receiving a scholarship, he passed the bar exam in 1986, becoming a lawyer advocating for the rights of workers.

Lee Jae-myung sits with his mother at Chung-Ang University where he was admitted in 1982. / Courtesy of Lee's election camp

Lee Jae-myung, front row center, poses with his fellow attendees at the Judicial Research and Training Institute in 1987. Courtesy of Lee's election camp

Lee Jae-myung appears in an MBC news report on March 16, 1998, when he was a lawyer and a member of a civic movement organization. Captured from MBIGNEWS's YouTube channel

He entered politics in 2005 by joining the then-ruling Uri Party, a predecessor of the DPK, and was elected mayor of Seongnam in 2010, after two unsuccessful campaigns for the post in 2006 and for a National Assembly seat representing the city in 2008. Lee was reelected as mayor in 2014.

In 2017, Lee made a presidential bid after former President Park Geun-hye was impeached over corruption allegations, but lost to current President Moon Jae-in in the DPK's primary. He was elected Gyeonggi governor in 2018.

Lee Jae-myung, right, then a member of the Democratic Party, a predecessor of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, reviews documents with Choi Jae-sung, then a lawmaker of the party, at the National Assembly in Seoul, May 7, 2009. Korea Times file

Lee Jae-myung, then-mayor of Seongnam, speaks during an interview with the Hankook Ilbo, the sister paper of The Korea Times, Jan. 13, 2013. Korea Times file

While his frank approach to leadership is considered one of his strengths as a presidential candidate, some observers say it could be a weakness at the same time, because it could give voters the impression that he doesn't listen to others who may hold opposing political views or policy ideas.

Adding to his difficulties are the scandals surrounding himself and his family members. Lee has yet to clear himself from allegations that he was involved in a highly lucrative land development project in Seongnam when he was mayor of the city.

In mid-December, his son was also accused of illegal gambling, which Lee immediately acknowledged and publicly apologized for.