Jeong Hong-won Appointed as Chair of the People Power Party Election Commission... Temporary Resolution of Primary Election Fairness Conflict

Agreement on Candidate and Supreme Council Member Appointments
Lee and Yoon Also Step in to Resolve Conflict

Jeong Hong-won, Former Prime Minister

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] The People Power Party has appointed former Prime Minister Chung Hong-won as the chairman of the election commission. With former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl and the party's Supreme Council members, who had raised suspicions about the overall fairness of the primary management including who would be appointed as the election commission chairman, agreeing to this appointment, the apparent conflict seems to have been temporarily resolved.

According to the appointment of the election commission chairman announced at the Supreme Council meeting on the 23rd, former Prime Minister Chung will lead the election commission, which will be launched on the 26th, overseeing the primary and presidential election processes. He served as the nomination management committee chairman for the Saenuri Party (the predecessor of the People Power Party) during the 19th general election in 2012. He is credited with contributing to the victory in that election. Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the People Power Party, said in his opening remarks at the Supreme Council meeting, "Through the Supreme Council resolution, we plan to grant full authority for managing and promoting the primary," adding, "Our leadership will unite to ensure a fair primary and successful promotion centered on former Prime Minister Chung."

Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, and Kim Ki-hyun, floor leader, along with other party leadership, attended the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 23rd. Before the meeting began, they took a commemorative photo with Oh Je-se, a former Democratic Party lawmaker who joined the People Power Party. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

Initially, Leader Lee planned to appoint former primary preparation committee chairman Seo Byung-soo as the election commission chairman, but faced opposition from some Supreme Council members within the party and presidential candidates including former Prosecutor General Yoon. With the leadership appointing former Prime Minister Chung, an outsider to the party, the internal opposition has been settled for now. Kim Jae-won, a Supreme Council member who had been critical of former Chairman Seo, expressed agreement on YTN Radio's 'Hwang Bo-seon's Morning Start,' saying, "I think Leader Lee made a good appointment." Presidential candidates within the party, including former Prosecutor General Yoon and former Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong, have also stated they will follow the leadership's decision. Yoon's spokesperson Yoon Hee-seok said in a phone call, "We will abide by the decision," and Won's side conveyed, "We trust former Prime Minister Chung's experience and character. We hope he manages the primary fairly based on principles to quell controversies inside and outside the party."

Meanwhile, former Prosecutor General Yoon, who has maintained a conflictual relationship with Leader Lee, appears to be taking steps to ease tensions coinciding with the launch of the election commission. Jang Je-won, chief of Yoon's comprehensive situation room, requested restraint regarding a rally planned in Daegu to urge Leader Lee's resignation, stating, "It could cause unnecessary misunderstandings and provoke internal party conflicts. We ask for the rally to be refrained from." Leader Lee's side also expressed deep responsibility for the series of disturbances and lowered their stance. In his opening remarks, he said, "As party leader, I humbly offer my sincere apologies to the public and party members for all the disputes and misunderstandings that occurred during the primary preparation process," adding, "Now that the election commission is launching, I hope we all unite with a shared heart toward regime change rather than focusing on differences."

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