Jeong Cheong-rae on "Ahn Cheol-soo will remain a preliminary candidate" forecast... Kwon Eun-hee says "It's just his wish"

"CEO Ahn's Decision Prioritized Country Over Personal Political Risk"
"Next Year's By-Election Will Significantly Impact the Presidential Election"

Kwon Eun-hee, floor leader of the People's Party, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 3rd. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Ju-hyung] Regarding Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, who declared his candidacy for next year’s Seoul mayoral by-election, Jeong Cheong-rae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, predicted, "He will not complete the race this time either." In response, Kwon Eun-hee, floor leader of the People’s Party, targeted Jeong and said, "He is just expressing his own wish."

Floor leader Kwon appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' on the 21st and pointed out, "A party that could not field a candidate due to their own fault even amended the party rules to nominate a candidate, so such a party has absolutely no qualification or situation to say anything."

Regarding the criticism that Ahn, a former presidential candidate, could suffer a major political setback if he runs for the Seoul mayoral election, which is a step down in scale, and loses, she emphasized, "Of course, he (Ahn) knows the political risk better than anyone else," and added, "The political risk that Ahn Cheol-soo personally faces is far less serious than the risk currently facing the Republic of Korea."

She continued, "Next year’s Seoul mayoral by-election is not just a simple by-election but a factor that will have the most important influence on the upcoming presidential election," and explained, "He has made the judgment that he must play a role in that."

Jeong Cheong-rae, Democratic Party of Korea / Photo by Yonhap News

Earlier, on the 20th, Jeong posted on his Facebook about Ahn’s candidacy for the by-election, criticizing, "The leader of a political party cannot even confidently say that he will fight and win as his party’s candidate," and "Since Ahn Cheol-soo of the People’s Party cannot win, they suggested unifying the opposition and backed down first. Will such a weak candidate’s approval rating rise?"

He added, "Even if the People Power Party agrees to (opposition unification), how could Ahn Cheol-soo possibly defeat the People Power Party candidate?" and "If Ahn Cheol-soo seemed likely to win, the People Power Party would not even agree. Therefore, Ahn Cheol-soo is likely to remain only a preliminary candidate."

He further stated, "In conclusion, Ahn Cheol-soo’s declaration of candidacy feels more like a declaration of non-candidacy, and it feels like it’s not Ahn Cheol-soo but Hong Gil-dong declaring candidacy," and criticized, "He declared candidacy but it feels like he won’t complete the race."

Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 21st. / Photo by Yonhap News

Meanwhile, Ahn held a press conference at the National Assembly on the same day and declared his intention to run in the April 2021 Seoul mayoral by-election, saying, "I will throw myself into preventing a situation where regime change becomes impossible due to losing the Seoul mayoral election."

This statement contrasts with his earlier remarks that he had no intention of running for Seoul mayor. On the 2nd, during a lecture at the People Power Party’s freshman lawmakers’ meeting 'Myeongbulheojeon Bosuda,' he flatly stated, "I have no intention of running for Seoul mayor."

Regarding the reason for changing his position, Ahn explained, "I hope you understand the background of giving up on the presidential election and deciding to run for Seoul mayor," and said, "I was truly sorry about the saying that the person who tied the knot must untie it. Today, with the determination to untie the knot and the pledge for Seoul’s true development and innovation, I have decided to run in the Seoul mayoral by-election."

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