Karina, a member of the popular K-pop girl group aespa, found herself in the eye of a storm after a picture of her outfit sparked accusations of political endorsement and breaching one of Korean entertainment’s unwritten rules: complete neutrality.
On Wednesday, Karina posted an Instagram photo of herself dressed in a red-and-black jacket with the number 2 on it. Many people interpreted it as a subtle nod to Kim Moon Soo, candidate of the conservative People Power Party in South Korea’s 3 June presidential election, whose campaign branding uses red and the ballot number 2.
