Lee Jun-seok: "Even More Absurd Than Seho Jo Missing a Wedding"... Refutes 'Cutting in Line' Controversy Again

"How Can I Stand in Line When There Is No Line?" Lee Expresses Frustration

Lee Jun-seok, leader of the Reform New Party, has once again denied the allegations of "queue-jumping" that were raised during the early voting for the June 3 local elections. He expressed his frustration, saying, "It only takes one click to spread a lie, but it takes a thousand times more effort to correct it."

Joonseok Lee, Leader of the Reform New Party (left), and broadcaster Seho Jo. Screenshot from Yonhap News TV and MBC broadcasts.

On the 1st, through his Facebook page, Lee stated, "The reason slander does not disappear in the age of social networking services (SNS) is precisely because of this tilted unfairness."

He added, "It is virtually impossible to correct all of the maliciously edited videos that have now amassed a total of 24 million views, but I must still do my very best."

He further countered, "This is an even more absurd situation than when Seho Jo was criticized for not attending a wedding and replied, 'How could I go when I don't even know the person?' I have no choice but to say, 'How can I stand in line when there is no line?'"

Citizen Protested at Early Voting: "Why Aren't You Standing in Line?"

Representative Lee Jun-seok of the Reform New Party denied the "queue-jumping controversy" during early voting on the 1st by sharing footage of the scene on his social media. Screenshot from Lee Jun-seok’s Facebook.

This controversy began on May 29 at an early voting center in Dongtan, Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province. A video showing a citizen protesting to Lee, essentially asking "Why aren't you standing in line?" began to spread. Online, this fueled debate over whether Lee had ignored the queue and voted out of turn. However, it was later revealed that there was, in fact, no waiting line for either in-district or out-of-district voting at the time, and the citizen in question had misunderstood the situation.

Lee Counters: "There Could Not Have Been a Line"

Regarding this, Lee stated, "The facts are simple. The Dongtan 9-dong early voting center is the same location where I voted during the presidential election, and as it is a community center, it is a familiar place I visit often." He continued, "I visited during a quiet time, so there were hardly any people voting, and five out of six early voting machines were empty," emphasizing, "It was a situation where a line simply could not have formed."

Lee criticized, "On the very first day of voting, strange captions were added to create and spread this absurd 'queue-jumping' narrative. The purpose of those spreading it is short and clear: the moment a lie spreads, malice has already achieved its goal." He added, "The way to eliminate groundless slander is for citizens who check the facts to go to the polls with a will that surpasses such malice."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.