Lee Jun-seok: "Congratulations on President Lee's Inauguration... Now is the time to look only at the people and join hands"

Lee Jun-seok, a member of the Reform Party who ran for the 21st presidential election and was defeated, congratulated President Lee Jae-myung on his inauguration on the 4th.

On this day, Rep. Lee wrote on Facebook, "I congratulate Lee Jae-myung on his inauguration as the 21st president," and added, "The reason why there are both expectations and concerns before a new beginning is, in the end, because everyone hopes that the Republic of Korea will move toward a better path."

Rep. Lee said, "Especially when it comes to overcoming the economic crisis and hardships faced by the people's livelihoods, there is no room for political parties or factions. Now is the time to look only at the people and join hands," adding, "As an opposition lawmaker and a representative of Dongtan, I will also go back and take care of the work that I had set aside for the past few months, one by one."

Rep. Lee stressed, "This is the real beginning," and continued, "The reason I was able to finish this election to the end was thanks to the support and trust of those who stayed with me. I am deeply grateful. I will seek you out, step by step, to express my thanks. Having walked this path together, I will repay you with even better politics in the future."

As the presidential candidate of the third-place conservative party, Rep. Lee ran through to the end of the election, earning 8.34% (2,917,523 votes). After the announcement of the exit poll results by the Big Three Broadcasters the previous day, Rep. Lee met with reporters and said, "The younger generation sent a lot of hope and expectation, but I am sorry that I could not fully live up to them."

Min-seong Hong, Hankyung.com reporter mshong@hankyung.com