2025 Lee Jae-myung candidate presidential pledge in-depth analysis - Economic pledge analysis

Introduction of 3 Key Keywords and Promises Book

The candidate Lee Jae-myung from the Democratic Party of Korea has announced a pledges book titled 'From Now on, a Real Korea' in preparation for the upcoming 21st presidential election on June 3, 2025, focusing on three main keywords: 'Recovery, Growth, Happiness'. This pledges book includes 15 major policy tasks and 247 detailed commitments aimed at restoring democracy, achieving economic leaps, and enhancing the happiness of citizens' lives. To attain these goals, the candidate presents a vision of five strong nations: a strong economic nation, a strong diplomatic and security nation, a strong cultural nation, a strong democracy, and a strong welfare state.

Goals of economic sector pledges

The economic pledge of candidate Lee Jae-myung is to achieve a leading global economic powerhouse. To this end, there are plans to focus on nurturing strategic industries such as advanced technology, K-content, and the defense industry. In particular, significant investments will be made in new industries based on AI (artificial intelligence), and he promised to elevate South Korea to one of the top three AI powerhouses in the world through a state-led AI nurturing policy. Additionally, there are plans to strengthen support for K-content to achieve a target of 50 trillion won in global cultural exports, as well as to develop the K-defense industry to expand defense exports.

Major Promises and Support Measures

Large-scale government investments and R&D support are becoming a significant characteristic of Candidate Lee Jae-myung's economic pledges. Plans are in place to expand the government R&D budget and establish measures to promote private investment to build AI data centers, securing over 50,000 high-performance GPUs to create an 'AI highway' infrastructure. Additionally, they plan to apply regulatory exceptions through a regulatory sandbox to invigorate the AI convergence industry. Furthermore, an AI national fund will be established to allow citizens, businesses, and the government to jointly supply large-scale capital to new industries. In the cultural sector, efforts to enhance K-Culture competitiveness will include nurturing OTT platforms and expanding welfare for artists, while in agriculture, there are promises to transition to future agricultural industries through smart farming and food tech. Lastly, the pledges also encompass support for small businesses and plans to revitalize the local economy as part of the recovery effort.

Funding Strategies

Given the numerous large-scale investment promises, a funding strategy is essential. Candidate Lee Jae-myung stated that he plans to secure funding by restructuring government fiscal expenditures and utilizing the anticipated increase in national revenue from 2025 to 2030. This plan aims to generate funds without additional tax increases. He also expressed the intention to increase private investment in new industries, such as AI, to the level of 100 trillion won to attract private capital. However, the success of attracting such significant private capital may depend on the credibility of government policies and the private investment environment, making a concrete implementation plan necessary.

Evaluation of feasibility

The advancement of industrial cultivation and digital transformation strategy aligns well with current global trends, providing a great opportunity to leverage Korea's strengths in various industrial sectors. However, the goals of becoming one of the 'top three AI powerhouse nations' and 'exporting culture worth 50 trillion won' are considered quite challenging. Achieving these goals requires continuous investment and essential cooperation between the public and private sectors. Additionally, increasing the national fund and the mother fund could assist in financing, but to achieve tangible results, a performance management system for investments and regulatory relaxation must also be implemented.

Difference from other candidates

Candidate Lee Jae-myung emphasizes the strategic intervention of the government and the establishment of a fair market order in his economic policies. This shows a clear difference from conservative candidates, who tend to emphasize tax cuts and private-led growth. For example, Candidate Lee announced plans to introduce fair valuation assessments and mandatory public acquisition systems for protecting minority shareholders during corporate mergers and acquisitions through amendments to the Commercial Act. This can be seen as an attempt to curb the abuse of management rights by majority shareholders and to enhance investor confidence. On the other hand, while conservative candidates mention the protection of individual investors, they focus on activating the capital market through tax benefits. Overall, Candidate Lee Jae-myung places importance on government policies and the protection of the economically vulnerable, while conservative candidates primarily emphasize market principles and corporate vitality.