Kim Gi-hyeon, Party Leader Who Called for 'Minsheng'... First Move Is a Greeting at 'Yeonpotang'

Kim Ki-hyun, New Leader of the People Power Party
"Only Livelihood, A Nation Where All Citizens Prosper Together"
Gu Ja-geun Appointed as Chief Secretary to the Party Leader

Kim Ki-hyun, elected as the new leader of the People Power Party, began his full-fledged party leadership activities on the 9th by paying respects at the National Seoul Memorial Cemetery.

On the morning of the same day, Kim visited the Memorial Cemetery in Dongjak-gu, Seoul, to pay his respects. He was accompanied by party leadership including Floor Leader Joo Ho-young, Policy Committee Chairman Sung Il-jong, Secretary-General Kim Seok-ki, as well as newly appointed Supreme Council members Kim Jae-won, Kim Byung-min, Cho Soo-jin, and Tae Young-ho. Kim paid respects in order at the graves of former Presidents Kim Young-sam, Park Chung-hee, Kim Dae-jung, and Syngman Rhee. In the guestbook, he wrote, "Only the people's livelihood, we will create a nation where all citizens prosper together."

Kim then presided over the first Supreme Council meeting since his election, stating, "Our People Power Party will unite as one and move forward with one heart for the happiness of the people," emphasizing, "The mission of this leadership is a landslide victory in next year's general election and the success of the Yoon administration." He added, "Politics is about solving the people's livelihood issues, so first, second, and third is the people's livelihood," and pledged, "The leadership will take the lead in prioritizing the people's livelihood." In particular, he vowed to address labor reform, pension reform, and education reform, which are key national tasks of President Yoon Seok-yeol.

The new leadership of the People Power Party, elected through the party convention the previous day, is entirely composed of the 'pro-Yoon (pro-Yoon Seok-yeol)' faction. Candidates from the so-called Cheon Ah Yong In (Cheon Ha-ram, Heo Eun-ah, Kim Yong-tae, Lee Gi-in) group, who were close to former leader Lee Jun-seok and opposed President Yoon, all suffered defeat. Since President Yoon is in the early stages of his administration, party members concentrated their votes on candidates who could support the government's operations. As a result, the 'pro-Yoon' leadership system was established, and there is a prevailing expectation that the party-government relationship will proceed smoothly without major conflicts for the time being.

However, the lack of diversity within the party may become a burden. Especially for next year's general election, appealing to the moderate voters is essential for victory, but there are concerns that the 'hardline conservative' party leadership may hinder the expansion of the party's base. Critical voices against the 'all pro-Yoon' leadership are emerging, which could deepen factional conflicts. In fact, former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min evaluated on his Facebook the previous day, "Finally, the People Power Party has been monopolized by one president as the 'Yoon Seok-yeol private party'." He also said that healthy competition and critical voices within the party would disappear.

Because of this, attention is focused on Kim's future appointments of nominated Supreme Council members and key party positions. Especially, the Secretary-General, who will manage the candidate nominations for next year's general election, faces the biggest test. The Secretary-General usually handles party finances and organizational management, but when the Candidate Nomination Committee is formed, they typically serve as vice-chairman and oversee the nomination process. Due to this, there were expectations that lawmaker Jang Je-won, considered a close aide of President Yoon, would take the Secretary-General position. However, amid controversies over presidential office interference in party leadership during the convention, Jang declared he would not take any party position and pledged to serve quietly. Inside and outside the party, lawmaker Lee Cheol-gyu, who leads the pro-Yoon faction group 'Gukmin Moim,' is rumored to be a candidate for Secretary-General.

However, there is speculation that appointments may be made to avoid criticism from inside and outside the party about the concentration of power within the pro-Yoon faction. In fact, Kim appointed first-term lawmaker Koo Ja-geun as the chief secretary of the party leader's office the previous day. This is the first party appointment since his election as party leader. Koo, whose constituency is Gumi-gap in Gyeongbuk, is classified as pro-Yoon but is known to have a relatively neutral factional stance. Previously, after being elected floor leader of the People Power Party in 2021, Kim appointed former lawmaker Jeon Hee-kyung (currently Political Secretary at the Presidential Office) as the floor leader's chief secretary. Jeon, who had little personal connection with Kim, was appointed because she was known to be competent. In a press conference after his election as party leader, Kim stated that he would adhere to the basic principle of 'Yeonpotang' (solidarity, inclusion, and balance) in party appointments.

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