Sangmin Lee: "People Power Party has Yoon's influence but room for improvement... Democratic Party is 'Lee Jae-myung's faction'"

December 3: Departure from the Democratic Party
January 8: Joined the People Power Party
Representative Sang-min Lee: "Democratic Party has become a private party"
"There is room for improvement in People Power Party's Yoon's influence"
"No equivalent to Democratic Party's Gaeddal"

Lee Sang-min, who left the Democratic Party and joined the People Power Party, is speaking at the Emergency Response Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 8th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

On the 9th, Lee Sang-min, a member of the People Power Party, explained the background of his decision to part ways with the Democratic Party and choose the People Power Party, saying, "I don't think the People Power Party can be definitively called a factional party like the Democratic Party, and I believe there are no groups like 'Gaeddal'." He added, "(In the People Power Party) it is true that President Yoon Seok-yeol's 'Yoonshim (尹心)' plays a significant role, but I felt that there was a political effort to improve it." Lee, who was a five-term politician of the Democratic Party, left the party on December 3 last year and joined the People Power Party on the 8th of this month, about a month later.

On the same day, Lee appeared on 'BBS Jeon Young-shin's Morning Journal' and said, "I was very exhausted with the Democratic Party myself." He added, "I was mentally exhausted from attacks by so-called pro-Myeong factions and 'Gaeddal' attacks, so I had no motivation to start a new party. That’s why I gave up."

He praised Han Dong-hoon, the emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, whom he met the day before.

Lee said, "It was not political rhetoric or rhetoric, but he truly had a direction he believed in, owed no one, and was never bound by the ideology of progressive or conservative." He continued, "It was a pleasant occasion where, although it was the first time meeting after a long time, during the hour-long conversation, it felt like meeting a close friend for a long time without any awkwardness, and we were in complete harmony." He also expressed his intention, saying, "I will try my best with excitement like a freshman entering a new semester." Regarding the meaning of his words at the People Power Party admission ceremony, "Going into the tiger's den to catch the tiger," he explained, "The tiger represents public sentiment, leadership based on public sentiment."

On the 8th, Han Dong-hoon, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, presented a bouquet to Lee Sang-min, a member of the National Assembly who left the Democratic Party and joined the People Power Party, at the Emergency Response Committee meeting held at the National Assembly. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Referring to a question he received at a press conference the day before, asking whether he would continue to speak harshly as he did when he was a Democratic Party member, Lee said, "There must be a relationship of trust for frank words and harsh criticism to be effective." He added, "They ask if I will point out President Yoon Seok-yeol’s wrong governance or leadership, but if I criticize the People Power Party or President Yoon immediately after joining, can I properly settle in the People Power Party? I need to settle here, build good relationships with many people, and truly have a consensus that what I want to say is sincerely for the People Power Party and President Yoon Seok-yeol."

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