Independent Han Duck-soo presidential election preliminary candidate's side raised the level of pressure on candidate Kim Moon-soo ahead of the second unification negotiations with the People Power Party candidate on the 8th.
Han's spokesperson, Lee Jeong-hyeon, noted in a written briefing this morning, referring to the results of the People Power Party's party member opinion poll from the previous day regarding the unification between the two candidates, that "public sentiment and party sentiment are clear."
The two candidates met the previous day at a restaurant in Seoul to engage in unification negotiations but were unable to narrow their differences. Subsequently, the People Power Party announced the results of a party member opinion poll indicating that 86.7% of party members believe unification must happen before the candidate registration deadline on the 11th. This spokesperson quoted that to pressure candidate Kim.
The two candidates are scheduled to engage in a second negotiation at an undisclosed location at 4 p.m. today.
He also suggested that candidate Kim proposed holding a broadcast debate on the 14th and conducting opinion polls on the 15th and 16th after campaigning separately for a week, stating that "Han believes that a swift unification is essential for election victory," effectively indicating he would reject the proposal.
This spokesperson expressed disappointment that the debate scheduled by the People Power Party for that afternoon was canceled due to candidate Kim's absence. He added that "Han strongly hopes that the schedule for a dual debate with candidate Kim will be confirmed quickly today," and stated, "Han will respond to any format of debate and any time it is held."
This spokesperson also actively clarified the controversy surrounding candidate Han that arose during the unification process. He first stated, "During the meeting between candidate Han and candidate Kim on the 7th, candidate Kim did not make any comments regarding the method and process of unification he desired."
Following the previous day's negotiations, there were reports that candidate Kim's side said, "Unlike candidate Kim, candidate Han did not prepare any alternatives," which is interpreted as a rebuttal. This spokesperson also reaffirmed the stance that "Candidate Han has left all decisions regarding the method and process of unification to the candidate of the People Power Party, including the People Power Party."
This spokesperson also refuted candidate Kim's remarks at the Gwanhun debate this day that "the People Power Party is arranging Han Duck-soo's schedule" and "a person who hasn't registered as a candidate." He said, "Candidate Han is registered as a preliminary candidate in accordance with the law and is carrying out his schedule independently, completely unrelated to the People Power Party," and expressed that he is "very sorry for the inaccurate statement."