The presidential election is less than three weeks away, and Kim Min-young, 31, has yet to make up her mind on who she would vote as the country's next president since none of the candidates has been able to persuade her to back one of their candidates.
In an interview with The Korea Herald, Kim, a Seoul-based office worker, said that "the various electoral pledges the candidates have made to attract voters in their 20s and 30s lack clarity in how they relate with the ideals and beliefs the candidates have for their administration."
"It appears that politicians are attempting to appeal to this age group solely by emphasizing their ability to respond to the demands." But what I really want to see is their genuine feelings about these social concerns, as well as the process through which they turn those feelings into vows."
The battle for the support of voters in their 20s and 30s has become more intense than ever, with this age group accounting for more than a third of all eligible voters in this election.
In their campaign speeches, candidates for president have emphasized the significance of "young voters" and "those in their 20s and 30s." The candidates, on the other hand, have been posting on popular social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram on a daily basis, as well as posting short-form videos on YouTube and TikTok — appearing on channels that the candidates themselves are unlikely to be familiar with, but which are frequented by many in the target demographic.
Despite these attempts, voters in their 20s and 30s remain skeptical of the politicians because they cast doubt on their ability to deliver on their political promises.
a method of addressing children and adolescents
The candidates' efforts to reach out to younger people have centered on the usage of social media platforms.
With vows geared at attracting public attention, the two presidential candidates — Lee Jae-Myung of the governing Democratic Party of Korea and Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party — have been flooding the headlines in their efforts to seek the support of young people.
Yoon's plan to eliminate the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, as well as his promise to pay enlisted troops a monthly wage of 2 million won ($1,680) in a country where military service is mandatory for men, are among the most contentious commitments that have drawn attention. These vows were posted independently on Yoon's Facebook page, each consisting of a single statement with no more explanation.
Additionally, when Lee stated that he would explore having hair loss treatments covered by public health insurance, the tiny opposition People's Party beat him to the punch and made it an official campaign commitment. Lee is now running for president of South Korea.
"I see so many populist promises being made in an attempt to entice people, but it seems improbable that these promises will ever be fulfilled." According to Park Kyung-sun, 31, who works as a journalist for The Korea Herald, "these vows from the various candidates are indistinguishable, and they have no impact on my political views."
As of Friday, Lee had made 72 policy commitments under the campaign theme of "small-but-guaranteed-happiness," which included initiatives such as lifting a ban on tattoos and halving the cost of cellphone contracts for conscripted troops who serve in the military.
As part of his "heart-fluttering pledge" campaign, Yoon has also provided a list of around 40 identical pledges, as well as 29 short-form videos that are less than a minute in length.
An anonymous Seoul resident rated the candidates' efforts on social media as "good," but stated that their pledges were not enough to persuade him to support one candidate over another.
According to Lee, 33, "I am encouraged by the candidates' increased attention to individuals in their 20s and 30s, and their use of social media is reasonable because it is true that those in their 20s and 30s don't pay attention to traditional media outlets like newspapers as much."
"However, I'm still not certain that all of the commitments will be fulfilled. Raising the wages of conscripted soldiers, for example, has already caused fiscal issues."
In her opinion, the numerous social media posts and appearances on entertainment YouTube channels were attempts to establish a "false" favorable public image, which Park Kyung-sun perceived as a sign of desperation.
"Lee Jae-myung's previous evidence, including a phone tape with his sister-in-law that used harsh language, as well as the Daejang-dong controversy, demonstrate who he really is. Park claims that Lee "attempts to defuse these concerns by projecting a fictitious image of himself on the internet, posing as witty and nice through online material."
Yoon Suk-yeol looks to be receiving more support from young voters than any other contender, including his archrival Lee Jae-Myung, according to surveys. Lee, on the other hand, looks to have a slight advantage among voters in their 40s and 50s.
According to a study conducted by Hangil Research on behalf of Kuki News, Yoon received 41 percent support from voters aged 18 to 29, and 44.8 percent support from those aged 30-39. Lee received 36.3 percent of the vote from the youngest voter group and 42 percent of the vote from those in their thirties.
With Yoon and Lee polling at 42.4 percent and 41.9 percent, respectively, among all prospective voters, the overall contest appears to be far more competitive than previously thought.
It has been suggested that Yoon's higher support from those in their 20s and 30s may be related to the fact that the conservative party's Chairman Lee Jun-Seok is in his 30s, as well as Yoon's campaign involving more young workers in its electioneering activities, according to Eom Gyeong-Yeong, director of the Zeitgeist Institute.
The survey was conducted with 1,009 individuals from February 12 to 14, just before the formal campaign season began on February 15. The results were released on February 15.
Young people are serious about voting.
According to Eom, a political analyst at The Korea Herald, in order to win over young people, politicians must provide "sustainable" proposals that can alter the underlying structure of society.
"The candidates are making pledges and events aimed at attracting young voters nearly on a daily basis, but many of them look to promise to give away government money," Eom observed. " As a result, "the voters are well aware of this."
Swing voters in their 20s and 30s are usually seen to be unaffected by conventional variables such as regionalism, party devotion, or ideology-based politics that have been perceived to define older age groups in previous elections.
As an alternative, Eom believes that the candidates should be able to give their viewpoints on a variety of social concerns and offer answers that would appeal to younger people.
As a father of two children, Lee Sun-woo says he is interested in hearing how the presidential contenders plan to address issues that affect "basic systems."
The low birthrate, for example, is a problem that voters in their 20s and 30s are concerned about stabilizing their living status and jobs. If these concerns are addressed comprehensively, other societal problems, like the low birthrate, will be fixed as well, according to Lee.
In an interview with Shin Jung-hoon, 37, he stated that he will vote for the candidate who tries to overcome divisive tensions among different social groups, such as those surrounding gender issues.
To illustrate, I want to select a candidate who would be capable of officially declaring the Korean War's conclusion. As a result, we would no longer be required to enlist troops, and I feel that this would help to alleviate some of the gender conflicts," stated the resident of Suwon in Gyeonggi Province.
Kim Min-young remarked on how "lightly" the candidates offer their commitments on social media, without providing any explanations, and how this indicates their degree of understanding of the problems at hand.
She also expressed concern about the candidates' treatment of those in their 20s and 30s as if they were a monolithic group of "young people." "I want to see a government that is serious about the needs of the people, and one that can capture the diversity of society to come up with policies that can address different needs," Kim said.
