[Politics, That Day...] The Poll Convention That Created the 'Park Geun-hye Era'

The Origin of the Pre-Election Poll, March 2004 Hannara Party Convention
Park Geun-hye Polls at 49.8%... Opposition, Women's Party Leader Era in 39 Years

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Jeong-min]

Editor's Note‘Politics, That Day…’ is a series planning corner that looks back on Korean politics through the ‘recollection of memories’ related to scenes, events, and figures that deserve attention.

"From today, the Hannara Party declares that it has broken away from being a corrupt party and a vested interest party and is starting anew."

On March 23, 2004, at the Hannara Party’s temporary party convention held at Jamsil Student Gymnasium in Seoul, the Hannara Party opened the era of a female opposition party leader for the first time in 39 years. Since Park Soon-cheon became the leader of the Minjung Party in 1965, a new female party leader was born only in 2004.

The historical significance of the party convention was not limited to that alone. The Hannara Party introduced a public opinion poll primary in the party leader election, which was traditionally represented by a gymnasium election. Reflecting the public’s opinion in the party leader election was a groundbreaking choice for the Hannara Party at that time.

Leader Park Geun-hye declared a break from corruption and advocated a new party that serves the will of the people.

18 years ago, the People Power Party’s inclusion of public opinion polls in the party convention results reflected the desperate situation of the party ahead of the 17th National Assembly election held in April. The Hannara Party experienced a chaotic time after taking the political extreme step of impeaching President Roh Moo-hyun.

The National Assembly’s choice to ignore the anti-impeachment sentiment faced tremendous resistance. The newly formed Uri Party was expected to win overwhelmingly as public opinion heavily tilted in their favor. The Hannara Party tried hard to reverse public opinion based on the major event of electing a new party leader.

The Hannara Party’s characteristic gymnasium elections were no longer able to attract public interest. Something symbolic that matched the banner of change was needed. The Hannara Party drew up a new blueprint for electing a party leader by combining public opinion polls and delegate voting.

The public opinion poll primary was an expression of the will to reflect the general public’s opinion in selecting the Hannara Party leader. Considering the conservative nature of the party’s history, it was not an easy choice. In the era when so-called boss politics held sway, numerous politicians were under the leadership of political bosses. They held positions as members of the National Assembly and various elected and non-elected offices.

They exercised their votes in a disciplined manner according to the boss’s command. Ultimately, the political boss’s judgment determined the election results. However, if a public opinion poll primary is conducted, politicians popular among the public have an advantage. Sometimes, the results may differ from the boss’s judgment.

The Hannara Party’s decision to conduct a public opinion poll primary implied a shift from boss-centered politics to penetrating the masses. At that time, the public opinion poll primary results showed an overwhelming victory for candidate Park Geun-hye.

Candidate Park Geun-hye received 49.8%, nearly half of the public opinion poll votes. It was a one-sided first place that could not be compared to others. The second and third places were Hong Sa-deok and Kim Moon-soo, who received 22% and 19.8%, respectively.

Candidate Park Geun-hye recorded an overwhelming 51.8% of the combined votes from delegate voting and public opinion polls, securing first place.

In a desperate crisis situation where the party had to escape the backlash from impeachment and the stigma of vote-buying scandals, the Hannara Party took a gamble to break through the crisis with female leader Park Geun-hye. At that time, public opinion polls predicted that the Uri Party would win 180 to 200 seats.

The Hannara Party’s top priority was to overturn a complete defeat. Contrary to expectations that the party leader election would be close, the overwhelming support for candidate Park Geun-hye reflected the party’s crisis situation.

Jin Jeong-seok, Emergency Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, and Joo Ho-young, Floor Leader, are attending the Emergency Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 19th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

The Hannara Party prepared for the 17th general election, less than a month away, under the leadership of Park Geun-hye.

In the April 15, 2004 general election, the Hannara Party performed unexpectedly well, winning 100 constituency seats and 21 proportional representation seats, totaling 121 seats. Although the Uri Party secured a majority with 152 seats, the Hannara Party secured enough seats to function as the main opposition party, contrary to the one-sided unfavorable predictions of public opinion polls.

The public opinion poll party convention, which symbolized the Hannara Party’s change and reform, seems destined to become a thing of the past. The People Power Party plans to elect a new party leader in the party convention expected in March 2023 through 100% voting by responsible party members. This means that the results of public opinion polls, once recognized as a means to reflect the people’s will, will no longer be included in the party leader election process.

Amid evaluations that this change in the election system is aimed at creating a pro-Yoon (pro-Yoon Seok-yeol) leadership, the public opinion poll party convention introduced by the Hannara Party 18 years ago is destined to disappear into history.

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