United Future Party Faces Steep Challenges Even Without Retroactive Application of 'Four-Term Limit' for Lawmakers

Applied from the 21st National Assembly... Considering the Opposition from Senior Members

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Attention is focused on whether the '4-term limit for National Assembly members' clause created by the Future United Party's Special Committee on Party Platform and Policy Revision will proceed to final approval. Considering the opposition from senior party members, the committee has decided not to apply the rule retroactively. The new party platform will be finalized after being reported to the Emergency Response Committee on the 13th, followed by a general assembly of members and a national committee meeting.

Park Soo-young, a member of the party platform committee and a Future United Party lawmaker, said in a phone interview with Asia Economy on the 12th, "Retroactive application of punitive measures is prohibited by the constitution, and if it causes significant opposition within the party, it is unlikely to pass. So far, the discussion has only been within the special committee, and the contents will be explained at the upcoming general assembly."

The clause will apply starting from the 21st National Assembly, treating even multi-term lawmakers as if they were first-term members. Similar to local government heads, they can serve up to three consecutive terms, and it is possible to take a break once and run again. Ultimately, this will be implemented from the 24th National Assembly in 2032. Initially, criticism arose mainly from senior party members who argued that artificially reshuffling members based solely on the number of terms was inappropriate. There were also concerns about disregarding the experience and roles of multi-term lawmakers. In response to this opposition, the party platform committee devised a kind of compromise.

Kim Jong-in, the Future United Party's Emergency Response Committee chairman, appeared somewhat cautious. After receiving a report from Kim Byung-min, chairman of the party platform committee, at the National Assembly the previous day, Kim told reporters, "The 4-term limit is not definitive, so we cannot say it will be categorically reflected in policy." Kim Byung-min said regarding the opposition from senior members, "It is natural to raise objections when there has not been close communication with party members. It is the Emergency Response Committee's role to mediate such issues, and we will pursue reforms at the point desired by the public."

Withdrawing the 4-term limit clause immediately is also not easy. Similar bills have been proposed in the Democratic Party, intensifying related discussions. Democratic Party lawmaker Yoon Geon-young has proposed an amendment to the Public Official Election Act that prohibits National Assembly members from being elected four consecutive times. Yoon's bill also applies from the 21st National Assembly without retroactive effect.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.