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| In this Aug. 18 file photo, Huh Kyung-young shows up in a traditional suit of armor and on horseback to declare his third presidential bid at Haengju Fortress in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. Yonhap |
By Yoon Ja-young
A presidential hopeful who has been known for his seemingly unrealistic pledges as well as his eccentric remarks and behaviors is seeing his support rate surge. He is asking for more support so that voters can see him in a major presidential debate with the candidates of the two main parties.
Huh Kyung-young, the National Revolutionary Party's honorary chief, who announced his bid for the presidency in August, noted on Facebook recently that his support rate is rising. "If the support rate surpasses 5 percent, you can see Huh Kyung-young at a presidential debate," he said.
The comment follows a recent presidential poll by Asia Research and Consulting. Huh garnered a 4.7-percent support rate, coming in third following Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party at 45.5 percent and Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party at 37.2 percent. Huh has more support than Sim Sang-jeung of the minor progressive Justice Party with 3.5 percent, and Ahn Cheol-soo of the People's Party at 2.3 percent.
Under Korea's election law, candidates who gain an average of 5 percent support in polls conducted by media during the official presidential campaign period are eligible to participate in the televised debate for the major candidates. Candidates from the major parties, such as those with at least five lawmakers or recording over 3 percent support in previous presidential or proportional representation votes in general elections, are also eligible to participate. These figures mean that Lee, Yoon, Sim and Ahn will be able to join the debate.
Though Huh's party falls short of these criteria, Huh might be able to join the debate if his average support rate surpasses 5 percent during the official presidential campaign period, which is set from Feb. 15 to March 8 of next year. However, there are still some hurdles, as major media may not include Huh in their polls.
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| Huh Kyung-young, the National Revolutionary Party's honorary chief, center, poses with supporters wearing costumes from the Netflix series, "Squid Game," after applying to be a presidential preliminary candidate at the National Election Commission in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, in this Oct. 18 file photo. Yonhap |
Huh has run in many elections; the latest one was the April 7 Seoul mayoral by-election, in which he got 1.07 percent of the votes, coming in at third place. The 2022 election is his third presidential bid.
He has been in the spotlight for his outrageous claims, including: that he has levitational powers, that he communicates with aliens and that he has an IQ over 400. In the 2007 presidential election, he was prosecuted for claiming that he was "conditionally engaged" with former President Park Geun-hye, who was at the time head of the conservative opposition party.
He is also known for his "unrealistic" pledges, including offering 300 million won ($253,910) to all newlywed couples or 100 million won in COVID-19 relief funds for all adults on top of a 1.5-million-won monthly stipend.
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