"Is the Plunge in Approval Ratings My Fault... This Is an Emergency Situation" Hong Jun-pyo Reveals Resentment

"I will keep my mouth shut, so try to make the approval rating 60%"

Kim Ki-hyun, leader of the People Power Party, and Pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon controversy led to Hong Joon-pyo, Mayor of Daegu, being dismissed from the party's standing advisory committee, and he continued to criticize the party, expressing his feelings of injustice.

On the 18th, Mayor Hong wrote on Facebook, "Is the party's plummeting approval rating my fault? That is due to the party leader's helplessness and the successive gaffes of the Supreme Council members," adding, "I will keep my mouth shut for a while as the party spokesperson said, so try to achieve the promised 60% party approval rating during the primary."

While he accepts the demand to refrain from internal criticism, it is interpreted that he considers his dismissal from the standing advisory committee unfair, as he is not the source of the controversy. Mayor Hong further warned, "If the approval rating does not rise and things continue like this, an emergency situation will occur before the general election where everyone must fend for themselves."

Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo held a press conference on the 14th to explain his dismissal from the position of Standing Advisor of the People Power Party and the recent controversies surrounding his remarks.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Since being dismissed from the standing advisory committee on the 13th, Mayor Hong has been posting on Facebook about once a day. On the 14th, he said, "I will bury the unpleasant incident that happened yesterday as an unpleasant past," but the next day, he showed a changed attitude, stating, "As a responsible party member who pays 500,000 won monthly in party dues, if the party or the country goes down the wrong path, I will openly and boldly point it out and correct it."

The reason Mayor Hong is relentlessly criticizing the party leadership regarding the Pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon controversy is analyzed as a move with the next presidential bid in mind. While it is also intended as advice from a senior party member to the stagnant party approval ratings, there is an intention to maintain public recognition up to the presidential election through issue-making.

There are also voices criticizing Mayor Hong's attitude as "refusal to accept the presidential election results." Lawyer Shin Pyeong pointed out, "Refusal to accept the presidential election results is not limited to the opposition party," adding, "Among the People Power Party, including candidate Yoon Seok-yeol and senior politicians who competed in the primary such as former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min and Mayor Hong Joon-pyo of Daegu, their voices, regardless of tone, always carry a sense of grievance over losing the presidential candidacy."

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