In his third bid for the nation's top job, Lee Jae-myung, the liberal candidate considered the front-runner in the June 3 presidential election, appears to have had a change of heart.

During his 2017 presidential run, when he lost the party's nomination to eventual President Moon Jae-in, Lee campaigned on chaebol reforms, targeting major conglomerates like Samsung, to the extent of pledging that he would “stake his political career on dismantling the chaebol system.”

Eight years later, the "chaebol reformer" has taken a different tone.

“Companies must do well for the country to thrive. If Samsung thrives, those who invested in Samsung will do well,” Lee said when he met with Samsung Electronics Chair Lee Jae-yong last month.

In this latest run, Lee is pitching himself as good for business, rolling out business-friendly pledges, as he appears to be more focused on economic growth than his previous wealth redistribution measures such as universal basic income.

Lee’s abrupt shift has raised questions about his true motives, with observers debating whether his pro-business rhetoric reflects a genuine change of heart or a calculated move to win over centrists and the business community.

Lee himself has even admitted to his change, saying he has become “desperate, earnest and more responsible." Rather than promoting his flagship universal basic income –- a scheme where citizens receive regular, unconditional pay — he has stressed the need for economic growth.

“I believe that the process of creation is more important than the issue of division,” Lee told reporters when asked on his shift in policy earlier this year.

On the campaign trail, Lee has rolled out a series of economic policies aimed at boosting investment and growth. His platform includes an investment of up to 100 trillion won ($70 billion) to develop the artificial intelligence industry.

Lee also promised to provide up to 10 percent tax credit for chipmakers that manufacture and sell domestically, in a first campaign pledge since clinching the Democratic Party of Korea’s nomination on Sunday. On Monday, he visited chipmaker SK hynix’s headquarters in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, pledging to find ways to stoke growth in the local semiconductor industry.

Earlier in February, Lee visited Hyundai Motor’s plant in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, where he was quoted as saying, “The growth of a corporation is ultimately everything for a country.” At the site, Lee stressed the need to provide tax credits to strategic industries, including the autos sector.

Lee has also floated the idea of an “energy mix,” an energy policy that combines diverse sources, embracing both nuclear and renewable power. This marks a clear departure from the nuclear phase-out policy of the previous liberal Moon administration.

Observers say Lee’s repositioning appears to be in an effort to court centrist and conservative voters ahead of the election.

“This can be seen as a (rightward) shift,” said Choi Byoung-chun, director of the New Growth Economy Research Institute, who previously worked at a Democratic Party think tank, the Institute for Democracy. “Lee’s call for the easing of inheritance tax and suspending the financial investment income tax, among others, indicates a shift.”

Choi noted that Lee’s moves reflect both “greater caution on tax matters and a strategy to expand support among centrist voters.”

Park Sang-byeong, a political commentator and professor at Inha University, echoed the stance, describing Lee’s shift as a calculated campaign strategy.

“Lee is resetting his positioning ahead of the election to appeal to centrists,” Park said. “One of Lee’s vulnerabilities is the perception that he is a radical progressive. Lee will likely win at this point, but not decisively unless he secures centrists' votes. Centrists are generally pragmatic and sensitive to economic policies. In today's tough economic environment, simply emphasizing welfare and redistribution is risky.”

Questions linger about whether this represents a true policy shift or a tactical political strategy.

Park sees it as a “strategic shift, not necessarily a full ideological transformation.”

Despite his broader business-friendly pivot, Lee has not budged on regulatory reform initiatives, particularly on corporate governance and labor rights.

Lee remains committed to revising the Commercial Act. The proposed amendment would expand corporate directors’ fiduciary duties beyond loyalty to the company to also include protecting shareholders’ interests.

Business advocacy groups, including major conglomerates, have opposed the amendment, saying it would impede business growth and make South Korea less business-friendly. Despite the backlash, Lee has led efforts to pass the bill through the parliament, where his party commands a decisive majority.

Although the bill was ultimately scrapped after being vetoed by acting President Han Duck-soo earlier this month, Lee and his party are adamant about the revision.

Lee has even signaled plans to reintroduce the bill in a stronger form.

“We will strengthen the monitoring function of management by revitalizing cumulative voting and gradually expanding the separate election process for audit committee members,” said Lee as he announced his platform for revitalizing the stock market last week.

The previous version of the bill had included a clause mandating cumulative voting and a separate election process, but was excluded following strong opposition from the business sector.

The conservative People Power Party slammed Lee’s stance on the Commercial Act as “contradictory” and “antibusiness.”

“Weren't the antibusiness policies like the revision to the Commercial Act, the 'Yellow Envelope Law', and the strict enforcement of the 52-hour workweek all initiatives pushed by the Democratic Party and Lee Jae-myung?” People Power Party spokesperson Shin Dong-wook posed in a statement Monday.

Shin argued that the Commercial Act revision threatens corporate management, the Yellow Envelope Law undermines sound labor-management relations and the 52-hour workweek hinders industrial flexibility.

“The public clearly remembers the ‘contradiction’ of pushing bills that strangle businesses while saying ‘the national economy is maintained by corporate activities,'” said Shin, calling for Lee to abandon antibusiness tendencies and pursue consistent policies.

Further strengthening his labor rights drive, Lee on Wednesday announced a bold labor agenda that includes shortening the workweek to 4 1/2 days, with the long-term goal of transitioning to a four-day workweek.

Lee said in order to tackle overwork, he will also propose legal limits on daily working hours and a mandated minimum rest period. Lee further vowed to reexamine the comprehensive wage system, which has been widely criticized as "a source of unpaid overtime and excessively long working hours," according to Lee.

Mixed signals and unpredictability are weighing on businesses, many of which are struggling to decipher Lee's policy direction.

“We are still trying to figure out what Lee’s stance is on business and are watching closely,” said an official at a major conglomerate, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “His policy on economic growth and investment could be good for the companies, but his backing of stronger regulations could hurt growth.”

Many are taking a wait-and-see approach, anticipating that Lee's policy direction will take shape once the general election campaign heats up — after the conservative bloc selects its candidate — and especially after the election itself.

Commentator Park said that if Lee becomes president he will likely implement policies selectively based on political realities.

“Not everything can be carried out as it is. It will be done selectively after the election,” said Park. “We will have to wait and see which corporate regulations will be eased or tightened and what kinds of investments will be prioritized.”

By Ahn Sung-mi (sahn@heraldcorp.com)