Ahn Cheol-soo and Geum Tae-seop Unite Multi-level Support in the Broad Opposition... "Let's Check the Ruling Power's Solo Run"

Ahn Cheol-soo Proposes Unification with People Power Party After Unifying Opposition Candidates Excluding People Power Party
Geum Tae-seop: "Let's Quickly Proceed with Unification Process and Hold a Debate Before Lunar New Year"

[Asia Economy reporters Naju-seok and Park Jun-yi] Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, proposed a multi-stage unification of opposition candidates regarding the Seoul mayoral by-election. The plan is for opposition candidates, excluding the People Power Party, to unify first, and then unify with the People Power Party candidate.

Ahn Cheol-soo, the People's Party candidate for Seoul mayor, is holding a press conference at the National Assembly on the 3rd. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

On the 3rd, Ahn held a press conference at the National Assembly and said, "I propose that all opposition candidates who agree to judge the Moon Jae-in administration and support regime change come together to achieve a first-stage unification." This effectively accepted the proposal by Geum Tae-seop, a preliminary candidate for Seoul mayor who suggested unification among opposition candidates excluding the People Power Party. Ahn said, "I believe Candidate Geum made the unification proposal with the same intention," and expressed gratitude, saying, "I thank Candidate Geum for making this difficult decision."

Ahn, who registered as a preliminary candidate for Seoul mayor from the People’s Party, explained, "The reason for proposing opposition candidate unification in the Seoul mayoral by-election is the urgency that regime change cannot be achieved if the opposition does not win the Seoul mayoral election."

The unification plan is to first unify opposition candidates excluding the People Power Party, which has already started its primary schedule as the main opposition party, and then unify with the People Power Party candidate for Seoul mayor. Ahn specified the unification principle that "the candidate who wins the first-stage unification primary will unify with the People Power Party candidate through a second-stage unification primary to achieve opposition candidate unification." Other principles include ▲respect for constitutional spirit and public common sense ▲refraining from negative campaigning or personal attacks ▲acceptance of primary results.

Regarding the scope of unification, Ahn said, "Those who recognize the problems with this administration and feel that things cannot continue as they are constitute the opposition," and added, "Anyone who has the will to reform our country’s politics and a future-oriented perspective will share a sense of problem with the Moon Jae-in administration."

Ahn also hinted at a power struggle by referring to the opposition unification excluding the People Power Party as Group A and the People Power Party primary as Group B. He said, "Since I am included among those leading in suitability and competitiveness as an opposition candidate, I called it the A league."

Candidate Geum immediately accepted Ahn’s proposal. On the 3rd, Geum posted on social media platform Facebook, "I welcome the decision of Candidate (Leader) Ahn who accepted my unification proposal," and said, "I will gladly accept the conditions you mentioned." Geum stated, "To check the ruling party’s unilateral dominance and correct the mistakes in the by-election caused by power-related sexual violence, opposition candidates must unite."

Geum emphasized, "The unification primary is not an end in itself," and urged, "It must be a winning unification that builds trust in the opposition and expands the support base to win the general election." He added, "In preparation for the sharp scrutiny in the general election, further self-examination is necessary," and said, "Through this process, a Seoul mayoral candidate whom citizens can proudly choose will be decided."

He also requested a swift unification procedure. Geum said, "Now that an agreement has been reached, we should meet and proceed with the process as soon as possible," and requested, "I hope we can have a fierce debate in front of Seoul citizens at least before Seollal (Lunar New Year)."

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