Hong Joon-pyo: "Kim Jong-in leisurely begs for votes in Honam... truly a spectacle"

"Why Is the Opposition Like This... The Outcry of Our Supporters"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Former Liberty Korea Party leader Hong Joon-pyo criticized Kim Jong-in, the emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, on the 2nd, saying, "Going to Honam and idly begging for votes is truly a spectacle to see just before the by-election."

On the same day, former leader Hong said on Facebook, "Just because you put in last-minute effort in Honam, do you think the Honam residents in Seoul will immediately return to our party during the by-election?" He added, "While Chairman Kim can just leave, those of us who have protected this party will once again walk the path of hardship. Why is the opposition party like this? This is the outcry of our supporters."

He pointed out, "The Seoul and Busan mayoral elections are not looking good. First, looking at the Seoul mayoral election, due to the nature of the by-election, voter turnout is very low. In other words, only the enthusiastic supporters go to the polls," and continued, "Considering the turnout is less than 40%, the Democratic Party will conduct an overwhelming organizational and government-influenced election, whereas our loose supporters, who have drifted away due to the Democratic Party's secondary policies, and the disbanded Seoul regional party organizations make it truly questionable whether we can win."

He went on, "Chairman Kim has already disparaged all our party candidates, so it is clear that whichever candidate is chosen, it will be a candidacy full of wounds," and added, "How can our supporters accept such narrow-minded, petty politics where we split and exclude each other without any countermeasures?"

Former leader Hong also said, "The Busan mayoral election is no different. Many of the Busan organizations have also disbanded, and soon they will announce the Gadeokdo New Airport, which is the biggest long-cherished wish of the Busan region. How can we overcome this as a breakthrough?" He pointed out, "Moreover, in Busan, where the Taegeukgi faction is strongest, Jeong Gyu-jae, the chief editor, is trying to run on that faction's support."

Hong criticized, "They looked down on Busan, where anyone who runs gets votes, pressured first-term lawmakers to run, excluded other senior or multiple-term lawmakers, and shouted that there is no suitable candidate for Busan mayor, so the people of Busan are very angry." He revealed, "Yesterday, an unprecedented situation occurred where our party's strongest support region, TK, was overtaken in approval ratings. When I went to Daegu, the people there were unanimously saying that Joo Ho-young, the floor leader of the People Power Party, might run in Gwangju in the next general election."

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