51 Facts About Lee Jun-seok

Lee Jun-seok is a South Korean politician who served as party leader of the conservative Reform Party since January 2024.

Lee Jun-seok has been noted for his staunch anti-feminism and support from South Korean idaenam.

Lee Jun-seok was born at Hanyang University Hospital in Seongdong District, Seoul on 31 March 1985.

Lee Jun-seok's father, Su-Wol Lee, was the previous head of the global institutional sales team at Shinhan Bank, while mother, Hyang-Ja Kim, was a teacher at Andong Girls' High School.

Lee Jun-seok received funding from the venture startup program backed by the SME Ministry on 5 August 2011 and founded Classe Studio: an ed-tech startup that developed personalized tutoring software and workplace training applications.

Lee Jun-seok had an interview with Park Geun-hye, the head of Grand National Party's emergency response committee, who visited 'Edushare' in November 2011 for 2 hours.

Lee Jun-seok increased his public recognition by appearing on various TV Shows.

Lee Jun-seok left with Saenuri Party and established a new political party, named the Bareun Party with Yoo Seong-min.

In 2018, Lee Jun-seok unsuccessfully ran for the National Assembly election.

In 2021 South Korean by-elections, Lee Jun-seok played a role in the Seoul mayoral by-election as the head of the new media division for Oh Se-hoon's campaign and played a leading role in mobilizing young voters by launching the "2030 Citizen Campaign Group," which replaced traditional political speeches with youth-led street rallies and public participation.

In 2021, Lee Jun-seok ran for the election to select the leader of the People Power Party.

Lee Jun-seok became popular in the 20s and 30s due to his opposing stance against political correctness such as "faux feminism," introducing reforms supporting meritocracy rather than outright equality of outcome.

Rather than relying on traditional campaign methods, Lee Jun-seok emphasized direct engagement with the public, eschewing a formal campaign office and instead traveling by subway with a minimal team to convey transparency and relatability.

Lee Jun-seok lost the partial election to Na Kyung-won, but won the main election, recording 43.82 percent including votes from the Public Opinion Poll.

Lee Jun-seok is rated as having Idaenam as his main support.

On November 29,2021, Lee Jun-seok posted a Facebook post saying "If that is the case, this is it," with another post showing a text emoji of a smiling face and a thumbs-down gesture, and has refused to answer on the phone and has been avoiding the press until December 3.

Lee Jun-seok denied the allegation and filed a lawsuit against the YouTube channel that made the allegation.

Lee Jun-seok is the first chairman in the history of the country's main conservative party to be referred to the ethics committee for review while still in office.

On 9 August 2022, Lee Jun-seok was automatically removed from party leadership.

On 26 August 2022, a court decided that Lee Jun-seok's removal was against the party constitution.

On 2 November 2023, Lee Jun-seok's suspension was removed, along with other politicians such as Hong Joon-pyo,.

On 27 December 2023, Lee Jun-seok officially declared his departure from the People Power Party and announced the formation of a new political party, stating that he would begin walking his own "NeXTSTEP," a phrase he used to describe his vision.

Lee Jun-seok's victory was unexpected, as Lee moved to his new constituency only weeks before the election.

Lee Jun-seok was the only candidate to win a constituency seat as a third-party candidate, defeating both major parties, the People Power Party and the Democratic Party.

On 4 December 2024, amid President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law, Lee Jun-seok publicly clashed with police forces that physically barred his entry to the National Assembly.

On 18 March 2025, the party announced that Lee Jun-seok would be its candidate for a potential presidential election to be held in the event that the impeachment of Yoon Suk Yeol is upheld.

Lee Jun-seok has most often been described as a conservative or centre-right politician.

Lee Jun-seok has advocated for what he describes as meritocracy or performance-based system.

Lee Jun-seok's perspective gained momentum amid public frustration over "fairness" controversies under the Moon Jae-in administration, including Cho Kuk scandal and the backlash over the Incheon International Airport part-time to full-time transition controversy.

Lee Jun-seok argues that claiming stigma effect of such education system as policies to keep the people ignorant.

Lee Jun-seok has expressed criticism of certain feminist movements in South Korea, describing them as having totalitarian tendencies.

Lee Jun-seok said feminism, when used by politicians to provoke conflict, becomes like 'blowfish poison' and criticized that hiring targets for women as reverse discrimination, while gender inequality in South Korea is still recognized to persist including high gender wage gaps and disparities in professional advancement.

Lee Jun-seok was an early proponent of the finger pinching conspiracy theory, a claim alleging hidden radical feminist messaging in advertisements, which was later discredited.

Lee Jun-seok faced criticism after the controversy led to death threats against a game illustrator associated with one of the advertisements.

Lee Jun-seok's rhetoric has widely been described as antifeminism, particularly in relation to younger male voters in 20s to 40s.

Lee Jun-seok is regarded as a leading role in politicizing gender divisions in South Korea during these elections, particularly by overtly amplifying anti-feminist sentiment and positioning gender backlash as a core campaign issue, and it is argued that support for Lee Jun-seok is, in part, rooted in misogyny, as he amplified voices within the anti-feminist movement and validated their concerns.

Lee Jun-seok has been alleged to engage in divisive political tactics, particularly by focusing on issues that generate media attention and resonate with specific voter demographics.

Lee Jun-seok has expressed support to increasing reliability on nuclear power, due to concerns such as oil price.

Lee Jun-seok advocated for a more energy mix that considers carbon output and energy reliability.

Lee Jun-seok has emphasized feasibility and public acceptance of climate policies.

Lee Jun-seok has expressed skepticism toward the disposable cup deposit system, arguing that implementation should not place undue burdens on small businesses.

Lee Jun-seok has advocated for incentive-based approaches to electric vehicle adoption, emphasizing that environmental policies should focus on tangible benefits rather than shifting costs onto the public.

Lee Jun-seok argues that the current exemption system is no longer financially sustainable due to South Korea's aging population and rising public transit deficits and emphasizes the regional inequality of the current system, pointing out that seniors in rural areas without subways receive no comparable benefits.

Lee Jun-seok argued that the new policy is more equitable and efficient, ensuring that benefits reach all seniors, including those outside major cities.

Lee Jun-seok argued that fare exemptions, 815.9 billion wons a year, are not a significant cause of transit deficits and raised concerns that the proposed transit card would limit mobility and negatively affect seniors' health, resulting in greater finanical burden.

Lee Jun-seok has expressed opposition to tariffs in the second Trump administration.

Lee Jun-seok opposes unconditional aid to the North, stating it should only be provided if its South Korean origin is acknowledged and distribution is transparent.

Lee Jun-seok has supported restructuring the government by abolishing the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, proposing that its functions be transferred to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, while suggesting the Ministry of Unification be integrated into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Lee Jun-seok has stated that the Impeachment of Park Geun-hye was justified.

Lee Jun-seok stated that he fashions himself more after Barack Obama in terms of policy.

Lee Jun-seok has cited Elon Musk as an inspiration, particularly for his approach to cutting inefficiencies in the public sector, referencing Department of Government Efficiency.