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In Yohan, chairman of the People Power Party's Innovation Committee, has ignited the debate over veteran lawmakers running in challenging districts. Following Rep. Ha Tae-kyung's announcement to run in the Seoul metropolitan area, calls for veteran lawmakers to be drafted emerged, but no chain reaction occurred within the party. Attention is now focused on whether veteran lawmakers from Yeongnam, whose names including Rep. Kim Ki-hyun have been mentioned, will join the Innovation Committee's push.

On the 27th, Chairman In, in interviews with various media outlets, mentioned Rep. Kim by name and argued that well-known Yeongnam lawmakers should run in tough districts such as Seoul in next year's general election. The aim is to break away from the image of the People Power Party as a 'Yeongnam party.'

Although there were expectations that Rep. Ha's declaration to run in the metropolitan area would spark the veteran drafting theory, no other lawmakers have joined so far, and no chain reaction has occurred. However, since Chairman In, who said that Rep. Kim had 'delegated full authority,' also stated, "If they don't do it, I will create an atmosphere where they can't avoid it, which is my job," pressure within the party to run in challenging districts may intensify.

In Yohan, Chairman of the Innovation Committee of the People Power Party, is giving a greeting at the first meeting of the Innovation Committee held at the Central Party Office in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 27th. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Kim Byung-min, a Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, said, "Since the recent defeat in the Gangseo by-election, the demand for the People Power Party has been to transform from a Yeongnam-centered party to a metropolitan-centered party," adding, "Chairman In's remark about the 'lower Nakdong River faction' may upset Yeongnam lawmakers, but from the public's perspective, it strongly signals that the People Power Party is changing."

On the 30th, Kim appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and said, "Ultimately, public opinion decides everything. By around this week, the People Power Party, which had a very difficult time after last month's by-election defeat, will start to recover gradually. If Chairman In gains momentum in this process, who in the People Power Party, which must secure a majority in the general election, could refuse this?"

The issue is practicality. Unlike the Yeongnam region, the metropolitan area is a tough district for the conservative party, even for veteran lawmakers with nationwide name recognition. Of the 111 People Power Party lawmakers, 56, nearly half, represent Yeongnam constituencies.

Criticism has also emerged within the party. On the 29th, Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo criticized via social media, "Former Rep. Hwang Kyo-ahn, who mistakenly believed that removing me would secure party leadership and the presidential candidacy, only leaked to the media that I should run in the metropolitan area during the last general election, dragged it out, then eventually ousted me, ruining the general election in Makcheon and effectively ending his political career," adding, "Does he have the capability to lead the general election as a four-term Yeongnam stronghold? If he acts recklessly without knowing his limits, it will be Hwang Kyo-ahn Season 2."

Former People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok said in an interview on SBS Radio's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show' on the 30th, "Even if people from Yeongnam come up, the chance of winning in the metropolitan area is zero. People there don't know who they are," adding, "I do not agree with such reckless moves at this time." He emphasized that it is important who fills the vacancies left by Yeongnam veterans running in Seoul.

He also claimed that Chairman In's push for Yeongnam veterans to run in the metropolitan area is a blueprint for next year's general election nominations orchestrated by an 'invisible hand.' When asked if the 'invisible hand' moving the Innovation Committee is the Yongsan Presidential Office, he avoided a direct answer, saying, "I don't know," but added, "If you open your eyes wide, you can see it," and "If Yeongnam veterans run in tough metropolitan districts and uncompetitive metropolitan party branch chiefs are removed, many vacancies will arise."

Former Chairman Lee said, "As soon as Chairman In was appointed, I received information that the Innovation Committee has two missions," explaining, "First, to send or make 3rd and 4th-term Yeongnam veterans not run in their districts and move them to Seoul; second, to remove uncompetitive party branch chiefs in the metropolitan area."

He continued, "I was skeptical whether this information was true or not, but the first mission turned out to be correct. Therefore, the second mission must also be true." Since the prediction about Yeongnam veterans running in tough districts has come true, former Chairman Lee argues that the mission to remove metropolitan party branch chiefs could also become a reality.

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