Governor Choo Mi-ae's 'Fiscal Emergency' Declaration: Political Motives and the Debate Over Gyeonggi's Actual Finances

Analysts say that after the completion of prosecution reform, hardline party members lost their target for outrage, so a new object of anger was needed. The impeachment push is being used as a strategic tool to rally the hardline support base of specific convention candidates.

Attorney Seol Ju-wan said, "Someone needs a target for the anger of the rights-holding party members, especially the hardline ones. It's playing the role of the arrowhead you saw in some drama." He explained that the impeachment push serves to mobilize hardline members.

This is read as an intention to consolidate support and build momentum within the political context of the convention.

The remand is seen as one of the biggest risk factors to the president's campaign.

Attorney Seol Ju-wan said, "From President Lee's standpoint, I think the remand ruling over the Public Official Election Act in May, right before last year's election, was arguably the biggest risk during the campaign."

This experience deepened the president's uneasiness toward the judiciary and became a basis for shared sentiment about judicial reform among hardline party supporters and the president's camp.

According to a Realmeter poll, the president's approval has hit its lowest level since taking office and is on a downward trend.

Attorney Seol Ju-wan said, "For the impeachment of Chief Justice Cho to gain force, it would have been possible only when the party and the president's approval were on an upward curve. But now they're actually on a downward curve."

This decline in approval signals the defection of moderate supporters from the Democratic Party, which is weakening the drive to push forward a hardline agenda like the impeachment of Cho.

This is not a political judgment but part of legal procedure aimed at enhancing the fairness and predictability of the judiciary through consistent judicial standards.

Such allegations can deepen distrust in election fairness and are leading to demands for close verification of the NEC's turnout management system.

Looking at various fiscal indicators, including a debt ratio of 10.40%, Gyeonggi is assessed as far from default and as maintaining a sound fiscal position.

It is confirmed that Gyeonggi's absolute debt amount is rising sharply. Some point to the 'spend-the-money' policies from Lee Jae-myung's time as governor as the cause of the debt surge. Rep. Lee Jun-seok and others argue this rise in debt is burdening the province's current finances.

Accounting expert Kim Kyung-yul said, "It's true that the absolute amount of debt is increasing. It surged when Lee, as governor at the time, started spending money. Isn't this a case of killing your own teammate?" He acknowledged the absolute rise in debt.

However, analysis suggests Governor Choo's 'fiscal emergency' declaration reflects a political intent aimed at President Lee more than a real fiscal crisis.

In particular, a conflict during the selection of the 22nd National Assembly's first-half speaker has been cited as a basis for these remarks.

Accounting expert Kim Kyung-yul said, "Governor Choo's resentment or anger toward President Lee seems to be the basis for these remarks. Isn't it that she dislikes President Lee and therefore supports Jung Chung-rae as a candidate?"

Choo's favorable reaction toward candidate Jung Chung-rae is also seen as a political move that extends her opposition to President Lee.

Accounting expert Kim Kyung-yul criticized Rep. Hwang for not grasping the urgency and reality of real estate issues despite serving on the National Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee.

The unreasonable reality of the current real estate tax system, under which buying a residential bus can trigger the multiple-home-owner penalty, was cited as an example. It shows that politicians fail to grasp the housing insecurity and market realities that ordinary citizens face, and that policy stays at the level of armchair theorizing.

Kim Kyung-yul said, "Even the Democratic Party lawmakers and the presidential office don't really know about real estate. Compared with Rep. Hwang Hee's nonsense and the nonsense from Reps. Kim Seung-won, Seo Young-kyo, and Kim Yong-min, it feels like they don't even understand the issues." He strongly criticized them.

Calls are growing for a more realistic approach and policy-making on real estate issues that directly affect people's lives.