Lee Cheol-gyu "Lineup? It existed during the Lee Jun-seok regime, but not now"

"Our Party is a Democratic Party..."
"Exclusion from Nomination Due to Factions? The People Will Not Forgive"

Lee Cheol-gyu, member of the People Power Party. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Lee Cheol-gyu, a member of the People Power Party and a pro-Yoon (pro-Yoon Suk-yeol) faction, rebutted the criticism by Cheon Ha-ram, a candidate for party leader, who said there is a power ranking behavior among 'Yunhaekgwan (key associates of President Yoon Suk-yeol),' stating, "If there was any ranking, it was under former leader Lee Jun-seok's administration, and if there was any attempt, it was then, but it does not exist now."

In an interview with KBS Radio's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strongest Current Affairs' on the 16th, Lee said, "When former leader Lee was party leader in the fall of 2021, he recruited party members and evaluated those recruited, but if they were not on his side, he removed them," making this claim.

He explained, "Which lawmaker would line up just because someone tells them to? Lawmakers face the greatest pressure from the votes of local residents and constituents," adding, "If the voters' sentiment goes this way, they have no choice but to follow. This is the sorrow of elected officials." He emphasized, "Lawmakers live together and make their own judgments about what is right or wrong; there is no ranking."

In response to the criticism that "Isn't preselection more important than considering voter sentiment?" Lee replied, "Our party is a democratic party," and said, "If preselection excludes factions, neither the public nor party members will forgive it."

However, he added, "If someone harms the party, that person cannot be preselected. Preselection should be given to those faithful to the party's values."

Lee said that winning the general election is not possible by simply choosing one party leader well. He said, "When the ruling party always holds general elections, the president's approval rating, the president's banner, and national governance are reflected in the votes," adding, "How many people would really vote for ruling party candidates just by looking at the party leader? Elections are decided by the capabilities of the candidates who go out to each region and engage in the election campaign."

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