Chairman Kim Sang-hoon Gyeongjun: "Incumbent Lawmakers Should Refrain from Running for Seoul and Busan Mayor"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hye-min] Kim Sang-hoon, the preparation committee chairman for the People Power Party's by-election primaries, expressed on the 4th that incumbent lawmakers should refrain from running in the Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections.

After the special invited debate on selecting good candidates, hosted by the Pan-Civil Society Coalition (Pansaryeon) and supported by the 'Mapo Forum' led by former lawmaker Kim Moo-sung, Kim held a press conference and said, "It is a matter for those individuals to decide, but creating another cause for a by-election is not desirable."

At the debate, civil society figures emphasized the 'no incumbent lawmaker' stance. Lee Gap-san, the standing representative of Pansaryeon, strongly opposed by saying, "We will even go to protests to prevent incumbent lawmakers from running."

In response, Chairman Kim said, "This is something we need to thoroughly review," adding, "Currently, there is no noticeable incumbent lawmaker intending to run for Seoul mayor, but if an incumbent lawmaker considers running for Busan mayor, the party leadership also thinks they should refrain from running, considering the party's seat count and other circumstances."

The call for unifying the opposition candidate for Seoul mayor also came up at the debate. Kim said, "There was also a request keeping Ahn Cheol-soo, the leader of the People Party, in mind. The message was that conservative and moderate forces should unite to field a candidate and compete for victory."

He added, "We are very interested in recruiting influential figures outside the party and unification, but first, those who want to join our party and participate in the primaries should be allowed to compete according to the party's primary rules. If possible, we also need to go through the process of recruiting capable figures within the National Assembly. I believe the leadership is moving in that direction." Currently, the primary preparation committee is creating new primary rules for the party's internal primaries. Kim explained, "We are gathering opinions to guarantee the voting rights of all responsible party members while lowering the weight of their results compared to before, and significantly increasing the ratio of general citizens and opinion polls."

Regarding recruiting external figures, he said, "Those who want to run as People Power Party candidates and challenge the Seoul mayoral general election should, if possible, declare their candidacy early and compete together. There are talks about Leader Ahn and former Democratic Party lawmaker Geum Tae-seop, and there is a need to join forces and run the election. We must make flexible decisions."

At the debate, Pansaryeon demanded that Chairman Kim open the party gates with a 100% national primary that all citizens can participate in. Kim responded, "Although this has not yet been discussed by the primary preparation committee, it is necessary to keep such aspects in mind and review them."

Meanwhile, in his opening remarks at the debate, Chairman Kim said, "Watching the process of former lawmaker Geum's withdrawal, I strongly felt that 'democracy' is disappearing from the Democratic Party," but added, "Because they act in a coordinated manner following orders, they have the potential to be a strong party in elections."

On the other hand, regarding the People Power Party or conservative parties, he analyzed, "Because the spectrum is so wide, there is a tendency not to recognize conservatives of different ranks," and said, "This could be a huge handicap in critical phases where we must unite and win elections." He emphasized, "Now is the time for all forces that can unite with the People Power Party to come together and conduct elections in an atmosphere of unity and harmony."

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