Will the Power Struggle Within People Power Party Ignite... Deciding to Include 'Reverse Selection Prevention' Clause

Lee·Na·Joo Side by Side Advancing to Finals
Visible Movements of Specific Factions
Conflict Sparks Still Remain

Kim Ki-hyun, Acting Party Leader and Floor Leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the meeting of Seoul Party Committee Chairpersons and Standing and Special Committee Chairpersons of the City Party held at the Central Party Office in Yeouido, Seoul on the 28th. From the right: Hong Moon-pyo, candidate Joo Ho-young, Kim Ki-hyun, candidate Na Kyung-won, Park Sung-joong, Chairperson of the Seoul City Party Committee. 2021.5.28 Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy reporters Hyunju Lee and Juni Park] The People Power Party's leadership election, now moving toward the final round, shows signs of reviving factional disputes. Ahead of the preliminary election results announcement on the 28th, candidates have continuously engaged in factional debates. Former Future United Party Supreme Council member Lee Jun-seok, classified as part of the Yoo Seung-min faction, criticized former lawmaker Na Kyung-won, claiming she is supported by the "old pro-Park Geun-hye faction," while allegations arose that former floor leader Joo Ho-young is backed by the pro-Lee faction.

Despite negative perceptions of factions due to the imprisonment of former Presidents Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye, factional support remains a crucial issue in party elections because it directly relates to organizational votes within the party. With former lawmaker Na, former Supreme Council member Lee, and former floor leader Joo all advancing to the final round, it can be interpreted that specific factional movements have become visible. However, it is difficult to say that any one faction achieved a complete victory in this election. Although former Supreme Council member Lee passed the cutoff in first place, another Yoo Seung-min faction member, lawmaker Kim Woong, did not advance to the final round. Additionally, lawmakers Hong Moon-pyo and Cho Kyung-tae, who passed the final round, are practically hard to classify into any faction. Both lawmakers are senior members with four and five terms, respectively, and are analyzed to have secured many votes from party members in the Chungnam and Gyeongnam regions. In Cho's case, it is highly likely that he absorbed votes from the Gyeongnam region as lawmaker Cho Hae-jin indirectly withdrew by running for Supreme Council member.

Meanwhile, the People Power Party's Election Commission decided after intense debate to include a "reverse voting prevention question" in the general public opinion poll for the final round. This will be applied to the public opinion, which accounts for 30% of the total. Previously, some new commissioners like Kim Jae-seop and Chun Ha-ram argued against applying this in the final round to best reflect public sentiment. This measure favors former Supreme Council member Lee, who has high public support ratings. However, during the meeting, the proposal was blocked due to opposition from other senior commissioners such as Hwang Woo-yeo and Jeong Jeom-sik.

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