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Kim Yong-nam, the Democratic Party candidate for the Pyeongtaek-eul district in Gyeonggi Province, apologized on the 11th for past remarks about the Sewol ferry disaster and for his role in former President Yoon Suk-yeol’s presidential campaign. He appears to have issued the apology after his rival, Jo Guk of the Jo Guk Innovation Party, mounted daily attacks over his past actions.

On Facebook that day, Kim wrote, “I bow my head and apologize to the bereaved families of the Sewol ferry victims.” He added, “I failed to fully appreciate how deeply my words would wound families who lost their beloved children and relatives. In the face of a grief that nothing in the world can truly comfort, my choice of words was clumsy. I deeply reflect on this and offer my sincere apology.”

In 2015, while a member of the Saenuri Party (the predecessor to the People Power Party), Kim criticized the special committee investigating the Sewol disaster, saying it “wasted taxpayers’ money throughout its term” and alleging the panel had “filled nearly all 120 positions with people who had activist backgrounds, then oddly announced it would investigate the president’s seven-hour whereabouts on the day the Sewol sank.”

Kim also addressed his stint as a spokesperson for Yoon’s 2022 campaign, saying, “My ties to colleagues from my more than 20 years as a prosecutor and my memories from that time clouded my judgment.” He said that after recognizing the full implications, he “took the lead in speaking out and exposing the Yoon administration’s wrongdoings.”

He added, “Serving as a spokesperson for Yoon’s campaign will remain a major stain on my life, but I will neither deny it nor try to erase it. I will take that mistake as a painful lesson and dedicate the remainder of my political career to working with you to strengthen South Korea as a bastion of democracy.”

Relatedly, Kim Hyun-jung, a Democratic Party lawmaker for Pyeongtaek-si B, shared Kim’s Facebook post and expressed support, urging, “For unity and the future, let’s win under the Democratic Party banner to nationalize and expand the party’s reach.”