Lee Jae-oh: "If Yoo Seung-min Does Not Run, He Will Become a 'Bland Person'"

Lee Jae-oh "If Na Kyung-won runs, Yoon Seok-yeol's authority will be undermined"
Yoo In-tae "Election system reform... Must focus on new party formation"
Yoo In-tae "Lee Jae-myung's politics end if Ssangbangwool and Daejang-dong corruption revealed"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Lee Jae-oh, Senior Advisor of the People Power Party, predicted that former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min's continued delay in declaring his candidacy would lead to a reduction in his political influence within the party. Even if he runs, he is expected to finish "second if he does well in the runoff." Former National Assembly Secretary-General Yoo In-tae advised Yoo to "focus on forming a new party."

On the 5th, on CBS's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' Advisor Lee said, "(Former lawmaker Yoo) not running is going too far now," adding, "If he doesn't run for the party leader this time, people will probably say, 'That person is a weak character.'"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

He said, "If he says he'll run for president in about four years, the political landscape will change frequently, so it might change, but if he starts running for party leader and then decides not to because it seems unlikely to succeed, that would be a big risk," adding, "Is there any way to retreat in this situation?"

In fact, he predicted that even if Yoo runs, finishing second in the runoff would be the best outcome. He said, "Since the runoff is between first and second place, he might at least get second place if he does well in the runoff, but it will be difficult to win the first round with only party support," adding, "I don't know how many candidates will run, but if someone like Yoo can't even pass the cutoff, that would be a serious problem for him."

This is what is called a 'dilemma.' The advisor said, "If he keeps wavering about whether to run, keeps fighting with the leadership, and opposing the president, and then says now that he won't run, will that work?" He pointed out, "It would be embarrassing to run and lose, but it’s even worse to not run and then quit now."

Former Secretary-General Yoo In-tae also advised Yoo Seung-min to focus on forming a new party instead of running, given that President Yoon Seok-yeol has raised the issue of reforming the electoral system to a 'large multi-member district system.' He said, "How about starting the work of forming a new party, changing the electoral system?" adding, "(Yoo) welcomed the electoral reform very enthusiastically, so he should focus on that."

Concerns were also raised that if Na Kyung-won, Vice Chair of the Low Birthrate and Aging Society Committee and Climate Ambassador, runs for party leader, it could undermine the authority of President Yoon, who has the power to appoint her. The advisor said, "She holds two public offices, both appointed by President Yoon," adding, "The appointing authority probably appointed her expecting she wouldn't run for party leader, but if she runs less than two months after being appointed, the appointing authority’s prestige will be seriously damaged."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Regarding the issue of the position of Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, who has been indicted on charges including election law violations and allegations related to Seongnam FC sponsorship funds, the advisor said, "It is not easy to plan next year's general election strategy with a party leader facing two trials," whereas former Secretary-General Yoo responded differently, saying, "The current indictments are not that fatal; the election law and FC sponsorship issues have already been cleared of charges."

However, former Secretary-General Yoo predicted that Lee's political career could end if corruption related to Ssangbangwool or Daejang-dong is revealed. He said, "If physical evidence or proof comes out," adding, "If corruption involving people who have long been considered close aides is confirmed, it would be difficult for him to maintain the party leadership based on that alone."

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