Three People Power Party preliminary candidates for Seoul mayor traded sharp barbs at a debate on the 31st. In the initiative-taking segment in particular, candidates Park Su-min and Yoon Hee-sook kept up their attacks on Oh Se-hoon, the current Seoul mayor.
The People Power Party held its first vision debate that afternoon with three preliminary candidates for Seoul mayor in attendance. The debate was broadcast live on TV CHOSUN and on YouTube's People Power Party TV. The People Power Party will hold one more debate by on the 10th and plans to hold the main primary on the 16th–17th.
Park directly took issue with Oh's conduct within the party. Citing Oh's recent refusals, on several occasions, to file for the Seoul mayor nomination, Park said, "Ability and experience matter, but if one's attitude and approach to work aren't aligned, they are useless," adding, "Demanding reform from party leadership while simultaneously attacking the party is like a hand attacking its own body."
Oh countered, "I am not someone who has usually pursued conflict-driven politics," but added, "This time, I had no choice but to raise an exceptionally strong objection." Oh said, "It was hard to run an election on a 'tilted playing field' with the party's approval rating far behind. It was a desperate appeal to correct this before the election," and explained, "The line change adopted in the general meeting of lawmakers came late but is a meaningful shift."
Yoon criticized Oh's Han River bus policy. Yoon said, "In London, river buses are very close from apartments to the piers, but the Han River is much wider, so accessibility is different," and asked, "Will citizens cross a park to board a boat during the busy commute hours?"
Oh responded, "On London's Thames, there are also places where piers are far. In Seoul, there are many spots close to subway stations such as Yeouinaru, Oksu, and Jayang," and emphasized, "Don't get trapped in the Democratic Party frame. Our national income is $35,000. In a country like this, administrative preparation of this kind is absolutely necessary."
The attacks on Oh continued on livelihood issues. Park said, "(Seoul's) urban competitiveness has risen, but the problem is the lives of Seoul residents. Dwellings, transportation, and childbirth are stuck in a vicious cycle," and pointed out, "Population is flowing out to Gyeonggi Province due to a shortage of dwellings, and longer commute times and the burden of childcare are creating a vicious cycle that leads to low birthrates."
Yoon, mentioning measures for the self-employed, said, "The Seoul mayor is someone who must think about how to generate Seoul's industrial energy," and leveled a direct shot: "Over the past 20 years, mayors Park Won-soon and Oh Se-hoon each spent 50 trillion won a year, roughly 1,000 trillion won in total, but failed to create future growth engines."
Oh said, "This year, the Seoul city government prepared about 2.7 trillion won to help small business owners," adding, "Along with the supplementary budget plan the government released, we will prepare a plus alpha." On dwelling supply, Oh said, "Seoul has no vacant land, so redevelopment and reconstruction are the key tools, but the Lee Jae-myung administration is hostile to them."