DP's Lee Jae-myung campaigns in liberal stronghold; pledging to foster renewable energy industry

Thank you for joining us. I'm Yoon Jung-min.

On the fourth day of official campaigning, liberal party candidate Lee Jae-myung continued his trek across the country, this time, to his party's stronghold.

His message there was directed towards balanced regional growth.

Our correspondent Shin Ha-young reports.

After spending the past few days trying to win support in traditionally conservative strongholds, Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung focused on rallying support in his party's stronghold.

Lee's campaign on Thursday took him through Jeollanam-do Province, including the cities of Gwangyang , Yeosu , Suncheon and Mokpo.

Kicking off his tour of this region, Lee pointed to the concentration of power in the capital area as the biggest problem South Korea was facing.

He emphasized balanced regional development, which is one of his 10 major campaign pledges.

In line with this, he highlighted fostering the renewable energy industry as a pledge tailored to the Jeolla-do provinces, saying the southwest coast holds great potential for renewables.

"We don't have a clear plan for renewables yet as we move away from fossil fuels due to global warming. Energy prices are likely to go up, so we need to develop our own resources. That's why I think we should actively grow the renewable energy industry, especially along the southwestern coast and in the Jeolla-do provinces."

During his visit to Yeosu, Lee outlined his energy plan, pledging to turn the Jeollanam-do coast into a global renewable energy hub by building a so-called "energy highway".

He said the region has plenty of resources but lacks transmission lines, promising to fix the issue and unlock the area's full energy potential.

"Why can't we build a country with balanced regional development, where companies come for local renewable energy? With Lee Jae-myung's leadership, we can change the nation --just like we saw in Seongnam and Gyeonggi-do, and just like the DP has changed."

Ahead of his rally in the party's stronghold, Lee visited Hadong, Gyeongsangnam-do Province, near the border between Jeolla-do and Gyeongsang-do provinces.

There, he met with young people at Hwagae Market to discuss concerns about jobs, housing and child care.

The choice of location and participants from different regions reflected Lee's intention to promote regional harmony.

Lee will continue his campaign on Friday in Jeollabuk-do Province, visiting the cities of Iksan and Jeonju.

Shin Ha-young, Arirang News.