A onetime aspiring celebrity confirmed he is auditioning to become a spokesman for South Korea's political opposition, as the People Power Party seeks to shore up support from younger voters in their 20s and 30s.

Yoo Dong-hyuk, a former trainee at SM Entertainment, one of Korea's biggest agencies, said he has applied to undergo interviews and auditions for the People Power Party's newest position, Newsis reported Thursday.

But Yoo also said he wanted to distance himself from reports that claimed he was a member of a sub-group of SuperJunior, a Korean boy band that debuted in November 2005. The group once dubbed "King of the Korean Wave" by local media is still active.

"I never stated I was a member of Super Junior," Yoo said on Instagram. "In the past, I signed an exclusive contract with SM to pursue an acting career."

Yoo said in his social media post that the contract was terminated after a lawsuit and differing views on conditions of employment could not be resolved with the agency.

Yoo starred in a 2017 web series, Goblin's Fire. Some local media articles at the time identified Yoo as a member of "Super Junior 2," an alleged sub-group of the boy band. SM Entertainment's affiliate agency, Label SJ, recently said there was no sub-group of that name, according to Newsis.

The People Power Party is South Korea's main conservative opposition. Lee Jun-seok, the 36-year-old party leader, is hosting the online audition. Yoo's name was included on a list of applicants who passed the first round of tests, according to Dong-A Ilbo Thursday.

The conservatives are enjoying a wave of unprecedented support for the first time since the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye in 2017.

A Realmeter poll conducted on behalf of local news service OhMyNews showed that that the party is maintaining a 41.6% approval rating, while the ruling Democratic Party's rating was at 28.8%. The poll was conducted Monday and Tuesday.

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