Yoo Sang-beom: "The rumor that Minister Han Dong-hoon is the election committee chairman originates from the Democratic Party... Difficult to expect"

"Participation in General Election Expected to Be Difficult"
"Seoul Metropolitan Area's 20-Year Consecutive Victory in District 1"

With the general election approaching and the 'capital region crisis theory' rapidly emerging within the ruling party, rumors have been circulating about Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon becoming the election campaign committee chairman. However, Yoo Sang-beom, the senior spokesperson for the People Power Party, dismissed the possibility as a 'theory originating from the Democratic Party.'

On the 29th, Yoo said on MBC's "Kim Jong-bae's Focus" that "(The rumor about Minister Han becoming the campaign committee chairman) was probably analyzed by Choi Byung-cheon, former deputy director of the Democratic Research Institute, who is considered the Democratic Party's top strategist. Because of that, the media seems to have accepted this as a commentary."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

He believed that Minister Han would find it difficult to play a role related to next year's general election. Yoo said, "Minister Han is currently highly focused on the overall duties of the Ministry of Justice," adding, "At this stage, it is very difficult to expect him to participate in any part related to the general election."

Within the party, the 'capital region crisis theory' is spreading, centered around lawmakers Ahn Cheol-soo and Yoon Sang-hyun. Yoo said, "Basically, the party leadership recognizes that the capital region is an area where we have never achieved a complete victory in over 20 years of elections, and we acknowledge that it is fundamentally difficult for us," adding, "The Democratic Party's crisis theory is about the threat of losing their existing positions, but our sense of crisis stems from the long-standing dominance of the Democratic Party in the capital region, which makes it difficult for us to establish a foothold for new victories." In other words, it is nothing new.

Regarding the emerging 'senior role theory' involving Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong and former lawmaker Na Kyung-won, Yoo said, "Although it has not progressed to a concrete stage, former lawmaker Na is widely recognized as a representative figure of our conservative side with a strong presence," adding, "Minister Won already holds a prominent status as a leading presidential candidate of the People Power Party and, as the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, he has gained significant public favor as a highly effective communicator, so he is expected to play an important role."

When asked by the host whether Minister Won would return to the party after the regular National Assembly session ends, he replied, "Whether it will be immediately after the session ends or not, I actually expect him to return to the party."

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