People Power Party must break with Yoon

 

Lee Jung-hyun, chair of the People Power Party’s nomination management committee, answers reporters’ questions as he enters a closed-door meeting at the party headquarters in Yeongdeungpo District, Seoul, on March 15. Lee stepped down from the post on March 13 but returned two days later. [YONHAP]

 
Lee Jung-hyun, chair of the People Power Party’s nomination management committee, returned to his post two days after announcing his resignation. He said the reason was that party leader Jang Dong-hyeok promised to grant him full authority over candidate nominations for the June local elections.
 
Lee’s resignation had initially come as a surprise. The dispute emerged during the party’s nomination process for the Daegu mayoral race, where several senior lawmakers were competing and Lee’s preferences were reportedly not reflected. The episode once again exposed internal turmoil within the People Power Party.
 
After returning, Lee said the party needed a shock similar to the electric jolt used to revive a patient whose heart has stopped. Whether that shock will lead to real change in the nomination process remains uncertain.
 
Signs of discord are already visible. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has said he will participate in the election but has not yet submitted his application for nomination. Oh has demanded the creation of an innovative election committee that excludes Jang and includes broader personnel changes.
 
In effect, Oh’s position suggests that Jang should step back and allow a new leadership team to manage the election campaign. Much of this backlash stems from Jang’s own stance.
 
Even after former President Yoon Suk Yeol received a first trial verdict, Jang questioned whether prosecutors had provided sufficient evidence to describe the situation as insurrection. His comments placed him at some distance from calls within the party to clearly break with Yoon.
 
A resolution signed by party lawmakers later endorsed distancing the party from the former president. Yet Jang has not demonstrated a clear shift in direction since then.
 

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The consequences have been visible in public opinion. A Gallup Korea survey conducted from March 10 to 12 found support for the People Power Party had fallen to 20 percent, the lowest level recorded since the party’s founding.
 
With less than three months remaining before the local elections, the party has yet to establish even the basic conditions needed to run a coherent campaign.
 
To overcome the crisis, the party must show that its pledge to break with Yoon is more than a slogan. Reports say supporters of the “Yoon Again” movement gathered in large numbers at the campaign office opening for Yoon Kap-keun, a lawyer for the former president seeking the party’s nomination for governor of North Chungcheong.
 
Figures associated with the movement, including activist Jeon Han-gil, reportedly attended the event. The party leadership should sever organizational and personnel ties with such groups and exclude them from party posts and nominations.
 
Another option would be to entrust election messaging and candidate management to an innovative campaign committee led by outside figures while Jang focuses on restructuring the party’s long-term direction.
 
Meanwhile, as the main opposition party struggles with internal disputes, the ruling camp continues pushing through key legislation.
 
If the People Power Party cannot demonstrate real change with a major election approaching, its political future may remain uncertain.


This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.