A Week of Silence... Will Lee Jun-seok Accept the Disciplinary Action?

Ethics Committee Reconsideration Request Deadline June 17
Meeting Party Members Nationwide Without Special Statement

Lee Jun-seok, Leader of the People Power Party (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Bo-ryeong] As Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the People Power Party, continues his nationwide tour ahead of the deadline to request a retrial from the party's Ethics Committee, there is speculation that he may accept the disciplinary action. This marks a significant decrease in his response level compared to immediately after receiving the severe punishment of a six-month suspension of party membership on the 8th, when he strongly opposed it by mentioning requests for retrial or injunctions to suspend the effect.

According to the People Power Party on the 15th, Lee's deadline to request a retrial is until the 17th. A party official explained that according to the interpretation of the party constitution and regulations, the retrial request to the Ethics Committee must be made within 10 days from the date of receiving the disciplinary decision notice, adding, "So far, there has been no request." Considering that Lee has not made any particular statement so far, there are remarks within the party suggesting that "in fact, Lee has accepted the Ethics Committee's decision."

Lee has recently been traveling nationwide to meet party members. On this day, he posted on his Facebook, "About 4,000 meeting requests came in overnight," and said, "I will first visit basic local governments where more than 20 people have applied." The day before, Lee shared a survey form asking for name, mobile phone number, residence, and party membership status, saying, "In the past few days, I have been visiting every corner of the country and talking with party comrades who have already interacted with me, but I want to interact with more people."

Regarding Lee's recent activities, it appears that within the party there is a judgment that even if a retrial is requested without changes in the Ethics Committee's composition, the conclusion is unlikely to change. Although there is still a pending injunction request to suspend the effect in court, concerns about escalating internal conflicts and the risk of severe damage to his political career if the request is dismissed mean that a cautious decision must be made.

There is also an interpretation that Lee is aiming for next year's party convention. This can be seen as an effort to secure support through encouraging party membership and nationwide tours. If there are no issues with the investigation results, he can return after six months and potentially run again. In this regard, Kim Yong-tae, a Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, said on YTN radio that day, "He has hinted at running for the party convention in past media interviews," adding, "I think he might be considering it." When asked by the host, "Did you hear this directly from him?" he replied, "I don't know if he said it seriously in his heart, but we did exchange such talks."

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