[Yoon Seok-yeol Elected] Law Passage Impossible Without Democratic Party Cooperation... Yoon's Biggest Challenge: 'Cooperation'

Even Including Independents, People Power Party Holds Only 111 Seats
Cooperation Unavoidable with the Giant Opposition Holding Around 180 Seats

Yoon Seok-yeol, the president-elect of the 20th Republic of Korea, is delivering his victory speech in the early morning of the 10th at the "People Power Party 20th Presidential Election Vote Counting Situation Room" set up at the National Assembly Library in Yeouido, Seoul. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Bo-ryeong] Although Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, was elected as the 20th president, the future of government administration looks challenging. The political landscape has shifted to a 'minority ruling party with a majority opposition,' and since he did not overwhelmingly defeat his competitors in the vote count, there are concerns that he might be dragged by the opposition from the early days of his administration. Cooperation with the Democratic Party, which holds about 180 seats, is expected to be a crucial variable in government operations.

As of the 10th, the People Power Party increased its seats from 106 to 110 by winning 4 out of 5 by-elections held alongside the presidential election the previous day. Including an independent elected in Daegu, the total is 111 seats. However, the Democratic Party holds about 170 seats, and when adding pro-Democratic independents, the Justice Party, the Basic Income Party, and Transition Korea, the total exceeds 180 seats. There is also the possibility that bills necessary for government administration, such as the revision of the Government Organization Act, could be stalled in the National Assembly.

The Democratic Party even used this situation as an election strategy. They emphasized that it would be difficult for Yoon to govern smoothly without the Democratic Party's help, thereby encouraging support for their candidate. They also used the strongly negative term "plant president" to cast a gloomy outlook on Yoon's future.

Song Young-gil, leader of the Democratic Party, said, "Can a plant president overcome this crisis amid the COVID-19 pandemic?" and added, "Rather, it will become a stark minority ruling party with a majority opposition, so we must prepare from now on the integrative ability and attitude to lead this." Democratic Party lawmaker Woo Sang-ho also said, "In any case, it is a minority ruling party with a majority opposition," and warned, "If budgets and bills do not pass well in the National Assembly, various defensive situations will arise."

Not only the Democratic Party but also Kim Jong-in, former chief of the People Power Party's presidential campaign committee who briefly supported Yoon, predicted that Yoon's ability to act would be limited. Kim said, "The opposition parties, which hold close to 180 seats, will launch fierce attacks again ahead of the general election in two years," and added, "If the government fails to solve the pressing issues, it will inevitably lose public trust."

The razor-thin election results also add pressure to Yoon's government administration. If the Democratic Party claims, "The number of voters supporting us is similar to that of the winner," this cannot be ignored. Ultimately, cooperation with the opposition is inevitable. Conscious of this, Yoon expressed his willingness to cooperate with the Democratic Party several times toward the end of the election. He said, "Through reasonable and excellent cooperation with the wise and outstanding politicians of the Democratic Party, we will prosper the economy and develop the Republic of Korea." He also appealed, "Please send home those irresponsible people who only think of their own interests so that the excellent members of the Democratic Party can flourish."

One of the plans to overcome the minority ruling party with a majority opposition is to appoint moderate figures. Instead of appointing officials with a strong conservative color in forming a coalition government, the idea is to appoint politically neutral figures to gain the Democratic Party's cooperation. If prime minister or ministerial candidates are pushed too hard and face difficulties from the confirmation hearings, leadership controversies could arise from the early days of the administration.

The razor-thin results are also expected to make exit strategies based on "public sentiment" difficult. When asked at the second official debate hosted by the National Election Commission last month, "How will you overcome the minority ruling party with a majority opposition?" Yoon replied, "In the past, the Kim Dae-jung administration governed with 79 seats and faced a huge opposition," and said, "Even if the Democratic Party holds 180 seats, if they obstruct a government elected by the people from working, I don't think that is what the Constitution intends." However, this applies when the vote difference is significant, and given the strong support for the Democratic Party, there are criticisms that relying solely on public sentiment to resolve the issue has its limits.

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