The Unfading 'Joo Ho-young Endorsement Rumor'... Lee Yong-ho Pressured to Withdraw (Summary)

Kwon Seong-dong Mentions at Meeting with First-Term Lawmakers
"Primary Elections Will Cause Party Divisions" Stance Also Expressed
Lee Yong-ho Officially Announces Candidacy, Making Primaries Inevitable

Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, is attending the floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 16th and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] Controversy continues within the People Power Party ahead of the next floor leader election. Although Representative Lee Yong-ho has declared his candidacy for floor leader, some quarters continue to mention the 'Joo Ho-young endorsement theory.'

On the 16th, in a radio interview, Rep. Lee said, "Floor Leader Kwon Seong-dong said that since this is an emergency situation, how about endorsing a candidate?" He added, "From his perspective, he thought that was the way for our party to survive, so he said that, and I took it as a sincere intention. On that day, I said that the party's health comes from competition, and the public does not look favorably on constant endorsements, so I expressed a different opinion."

In fact, Floor Leader Kwon contacted potential candidates to urge them not to run. Rep. Lee said, "No matter how much I thought about it, I felt this was not right, so I said I would go my own way."

Rep. Lee Yong-ho of the People Power Party is declaring his candidacy for floor leader at the National Assembly Communication Office on the 15th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

On the other hand, some lawmakers insisting that Joo Ho-young should be endorsed are not changing their stance.

After the floor strategy meeting that day, Floor Leader Kwon responded affirmatively when asked by reporters if his position on endorsing the new floor leader remained unchanged.

It is known that Floor Leader Kwon reiterated the need for endorsement during a lunch with proportional representation lawmakers the previous day.

One proportional representation lawmaker said, "If we hold a primary election amid the party's chaotic situation, there could be aftershocks following the election," adding, "There is always internal damage after an election, so in an emergency situation, endorsement is necessary."

Meanwhile, with the deadline for floor leader candidate registration just one day away, no other lawmakers besides Rep. Lee have officially declared their candidacy as of that morning.

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