Yoon Seok-yeol Seats Kwon Seong-dong, Now Tug-of-War with Kim Jong-in over Campaign Committee Appointments

Kwon Seong-dong Appointed Party Secretary-General
Yoon and Kim's Power Struggle Reaches Peak
First Personnel Appointment Delayed, Campaign Committee in Turmoil
Delays in Announcement Worsen Issues... Final Negotiation Imminent

Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate (center), and Kwon Seong-dong, Secretary-General (left) [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporters Hyunju Lee and Boryeong Geum] On the 18th, the People Power Party held an executive meeting and appointed Representative Kwon Seong-dong as the new Secretary-General. Although there was a tense standoff between presidential candidate Yoon Seok-yeol and party leader Lee Jun-seok during the appointment process, ultimately Yoon's will prevailed. Meanwhile, Yoon is also engaged in a tug-of-war over forming the election committee with former emergency committee chairman Kim Jong-in (pictured). The core issue is the recruitment of former emergency committee chairman Kim Byung-joon, who has an uncomfortable relationship with Kim Jong-in. At present, both Yoon Seok-yeol and Kim Jong-in appear unwilling to yield their positions, and the outcome of this tug-of-war is expected to be a measure of who will lead the election committee in the future?whether it will be Yoon or Kim Jong-in.

Party leader Lee Jun-seok said at the meeting, "The appointment of Representative Kwon Seong-dong as Secretary-General was intended to facilitate smooth communication with the candidate's side during the presidential election process." However, unlike previous party leaders, Lee does not seem likely to delegate party affairs entirely to the Secretary-General. He stated, "I ask all party office staff to diligently ensure that there are no disruptions in election affairs, including the public office candidate qualification exam and the so-called 'silk pouch' election tasks," expressing his intention to personally oversee the matters he has been promoting.

Thus, the issue of appointing the Secretary-General, which had been a source of conflict between candidate Yoon and leader Lee, has been resolved, but the formation of the election committee has yet to take shape. This is because former chairman Kim Jong-in is completely rejecting the recruitment of personnel with whom he is uncomfortable. In particular, Kim is known to oppose the concept of the National Integration Committee and the recruitment of former Democratic Party leader Kim Han-gil and former emergency committee chairman Kim Byung-joon. There are also prospects that the election committee structure, which was planned to have general, standing, and joint election committee chairs with four functional headquarters beneath them, could be entirely changed. Lee said on a radio show that day, "There is a possibility that the framework will change," adding, "The names of the people currently being mentioned may also change."

The announcement of the election committee formation has been postponed until next week, reportedly due to differences between candidate Yoon and former chairman Kim Jong-in regarding the committee's structure and appointments. From Yoon's perspective, Kim Jong-in's leadership of the election committee is crucial for winning the presidential election, so there is an incentive to accommodate some of Kim's demands, but current circumstances suggest otherwise. The day before, Yoon's side disclosed the meeting with Kim Jong-in and stated, "We have received much advice and help from Representative Kim Han-gil and Chairman Kim Byung-joon," reaffirming their intention to recruit the two. This can also be seen as a display of confidence amid Yoon's soaring approval ratings.

Regarding the series of events, Professor Park Sang-byeong of Inha University Graduate School of Policy said, "If Yoon wants to bring in Kim Jong-in, he should take a more proactive approach, or if there are differences in position, quickly resolve them and form the camp without Kim Jong-in," warning, "Spending time in conflict with the party could lead to self-destruction." Political commentator Lee Jong-hoon also analyzed, "If the announcement of the election committee appointments is delayed, the moderate voter base could leave at any time, which could affect approval ratings."

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