Can Yoon become Korea's Macron?

By Shim Jae-yun

Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl has continued to steal the limelight with various opinion polls showing he leads prospective presidential aspirants along with Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung. A survey conducted by the Korea Society Opinion Institute on May 21 and 22 showed Yoon was the most-favored presidential candidate with support of 32.4 percent, ahead of Lee at 28.2 percent and former Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon with 10.3 percent.

Now all eyes are on whether Yoon will be able to maintain this lead in the upcoming presidential race and become the nation's next president in May 2022. He has already emerged as the most preferred presidential candidate for the "non-ruling" camp, and will likely declare his bid soon, continuing to remain a significant factor in the crucial election.

Kim Chong-in, former chairman of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), lauded Yoon for his charisma and audacity. "He succeeded in making 'fairness' his brand, which is the spirit of the times. I think he snatched the limelight." Kim, a highly influential political mentor, expressed the hope that Yoon will follow in the footsteps of French President Emmanuel Macron.

Except for the age difference, Yoon, 62, and Macron, 43, are similar in many respects. First, just like Macron before he became head of state, Yoon, as a life-time prosecutor, lacks political experience. Macron, a financial expert, worked for Rothschild with a brief stint in the Francois Hollande administration as a presidential economic adviser and economy and digitization minister in 2014.

Second, both bolted from their incumbent governments. Thanks to his fight against corruption under former conservative administrations, Yoon was tapped as chief prosecutor by President Moon Jae-in. Yet he quit the post to protest the "wayward and arrogant" pursuit of prosecutorial reform by the ruling elite. Macron also left "his" ruling camp 20 months ahead of the 2017 presidential election, after his attempt to legislate a package of pro-business laws ended in failure.

Third, both mustered rising support after severing ties with their respective administrations. Macron founded a new party, En March, with a focus on pragmatism, and took power in the 2017 election at the age of 39 amid prevalent antipathy toward the two mainstream parties ― the Socialist Party and Les Republican. The French people were fed up with the incompetence and corruption of the two parties. Macron formed a network of 4,000 citizen-volunteers who conducted surveys on 100,000 people, the results of which were analyzed by around 200 supporters.

This is similar to the reality here where people have grown sick and tired of the two major parties ― the current ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and the PPP. The main opposition party has yet to overcome the disdainful public view of being an outdated, ultra-conservative party. The DPK, despite its crushing defeat in the by-elections for mayors of Seoul and Busan, has shown no sign of improving its notorious incompetence and nepotism, symbolized by the Korean phrase "naeronambul," meaning "I am right, you are wrong."

In order for Yoon to follow the path of Macron, he will need to gather support from a wide range of people. In reality, joining the PPP would be a feasible way to do this, but it will entail risks for Yoon due to the possible efforts by stalwart "senior" members of the party to contain him. Many PPP members were the targets of anti-corruption investigations led by Yoon under the impeached former President Park Geun-hye's administration.

As Macron did, Yoon may opt for "a third way." As a centrist pragmatist, he may attempt to organize a nationwide network comprised of citizens from various sectors of society. Yoon should be able to recruit capable people, including some from the current political parties, as recently, many organizations have been sprouting up to support him, even though he is still keeping his distance. Yoon's associates, however, have admitted that they have been contacting many civic group representatives.

Failure to garner support and expand his political clout could deal a blow to Yoon, as seen in the cases of ex-Prime Minister Goh Kun in 2007 and former United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in 2017. Despite rising popularity as potential presidential hopefuls, they dropped their bids in the face of mounting challenges and odds.

Yoon has shown his political ambition by saying he would devote himself to serve the people and keep the constitutional spirit and rule of law alive. In addition to such values, he needs to become familiar with economic and security affairs.

In this vein, it is encouraging for him to have met with many experts to listen to their views for a future national vision. Many people seem to hope that Yoon will be able to stay in the race and inject fresh air into the contemptuous political circle, irrespective of whether he becomes the country's next president.

Shim Jae-yun (jayshim@koreatimes.co.kr) is editorial writer at The Korea Times.