Both Ruling and Opposition Parties Predict New Parties... The Harsh History of 'Third Zone' Presidential Elections

Anticipated New Party Formation Ahead of the 22nd General Election
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Unification National Party, People's Party Experience Reality's Wall

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Both ruling and opposition figures have predicted the formation of a "new party" ahead of next year's general election. The analysis is that factions unable to reconcile with the mainstream within their parties could target moderate-leaning voters.

However, considering that most 'third zone' candidates who have attempted to break the structure centered on the two major parties have failed, it is uncertain whether there is space left for centrist politics. Since the ultimate goal of political parties is to gain power, and no party challenging the presidential election based on the third zone has succeeded, there are expected to be limitations in practical politics.

On the 21st, Ha Tae-kyung, a member of the People Power Party, said on MBC's "Kim Jong-bae's Focus" "If more people say they dislike both parties, probably a third party will emerge in the general election," adding, "(The members) will likely be more from the Democratic Party."

On the other hand, former National Intelligence Service Director Park Ji-won said on YouTube's "Kim Eo-jun's News Factory," "Lee Jun-seok·Yoo Seung-min faction members are being cut from nominations, so a new party will form early next year, around February or March, and the conservative first party might become the Yoo Seung-min·Lee Jun-seok party," he predicted.

Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, and Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People Party, are shaking hands after concluding a joint press conference announcing the merger of the two parties at the National Assembly Communication Office on the 18th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

Shin Pyeong, a lawyer known as "President Yoon Seok-yeol's mentor," also predicts a political realignment.

Shin said on KBS's "Choi Kyung-young's Strong Current Affairs," "It would not be surprising if a political realignment happens tomorrow. The opposition is heading toward an alliance between Lee Jae-myung's party leadership faction and the rest of the opposition, but a valley of emotions has already formed. On the ruling side, the Lee Jun-seok and Yoo Seung-min factions have continuously hurled curses at the president since his inauguration," forecasting the emergence of a new party from the anti-Myung faction or the Lee Jun-seok and Yoo Seung-min factions.

Voices are also emerging that a "centrist new party" is necessary to improve the current political structure, where the two parties dominate and are locked in a "strong against strong" confrontation. At a bipartisan political reform lawmakers' meeting held on the 20th at the National Assembly Members' Office Building, Sim Sang-jung, leader of the Justice Party, emphasized, "A democracy is a system that creates a party supported by 25 to 30 percent of the non-affiliated voters, and this is the core of political reform."

However, it remains uncertain whether a centrist-leaning new party can be sustainable in the already polarized political landscape by region and generation. In the past, parties and candidates representing the "third zone" stirred up waves before presidential and general elections under the banner of breaking the two-party structure, but they only enjoyed "brief popularity" and ultimately failed to break the two-party system. A representative case is the Unification National Party founded in 1992 by Chung Ju-yung, honorary chairman of Hyundai Group.

The Unification National Party rapidly rose as the third-largest party in the 14th general election by winning 31 seats, but after Chairman Chung lost the presidential election later that year and announced his retirement from politics in February 1993, the party fell into a minor party status following mass defections.

In the 15th presidential election, candidate Lee In-je ran as a "third zone" candidate but ultimately failed, and Park Chan-jong, who caused a stir by winning 6.4% of the vote as a "third zone" candidate in the 14th presidential election, later joined the ruling New Korea Party.

Ban Ki-moon, former UN Secretary-General, who raised high expectations by positioning himself as a "third zone" candidate in the 19th presidential election, eventually announced he would not run. Ahn Cheol-soo, a member of the People Power Party, was considered a representative "third zone" politician, but his "third zone" politics ended when the People Power Party and the People’s Party merged in the last presidential election.

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