Geochang County Mayoral Preliminary Candidate Hongki Lee: "No Involvement in Party Member List Leak, Rerun Exclusion Unacceptable"

Hongki Lee, the preliminary candidate for the mayor of Geochang County, Gyeongnam from the People Power Party, demanded the cancellation of the rerun from which he was excluded and the disclosure of the existing primary election results.

On April 22, Lee held a press conference in front of the entrance to the Gyeongnam Provincial Council with his supporters, stating, "I have already clarified that I have no connection to the alleged party member list leak raised by some, but it is completely unacceptable that I was excluded from the rerun without any concrete investigation or review."

He said, "The suspicion of a party member list leak is merely a unilateral claim from a competing candidate," and added, "On April 15, I submitted a written explanation and a statement of facts regarding this matter to the Provincial Party Nomination Committee."

He continued, "The Provincial Party Nomination Committee should announce the primary results and address any issues that arise, but the fact that they have not even made an announcement fuels suspicions that they already confirmed me as the final nominee. They must clarify this. In Haman County, the primary results were made public despite allegations of a party member list leak, so explain why they are not being disclosed in Geochang County."

Hongki Lee, a preliminary candidate for the People Power Party in Geochang County, Gyeongnam, is holding a press conference demanding the cancellation of the rerun election from which he was excluded and the disclosure of the existing primary election results.
[Photo by Seryeong Lee]

He also said, "Despite the various circumstances shown in opinion polls indicating my leading support, the decision to exclude me from the rerun without specific grounds raises suspicions of a backroom deal to nominate a particular candidate and, in effect, a strategic nomination. The committee must clarify its position regarding these suspicions."

He further emphasized, "I absolutely cannot accept the decision of the Provincial Party Nomination Committee. The committee's decisions regarding the primary must be immediately canceled, and the head of the nomination committee who made this unfair decision must resign at once."

Lee added, "I have filed an objection to both the Provincial and Central Party Nomination Committees and applied for an injunction with the Changwon District Court to suspend the effect of the rerun decision. I will use every possible means, including requesting the disclosure of primary results concerning myself, to correct this unjust treatment."

Previously, the Provincial Party Nomination Committee of the People Power Party declared the Geochang County mayoral primary, held for four preliminary candidates on April 13 and 14, completely invalid due to allegations of a party member list leak, and decided to conduct a rerun.

The rerun will be held on April 25 and 26, targeting only the remaining preliminary candidates, Inmo Koo and Ilsu Kim, excluding those involved in the party member list leak allegations.

Additionally, the Provincial Party announced plans to expel the secretary-general of the party committee in connection with the party member list leak and to request an investigation into the leak that occurred during the primary process.

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