People Power Party South Gyeongsang Chapter Expels Mayor Cho Kyuil of Jinju for Independent Candidacy

The Ethics Committee of the People Power Party's South Gyeongsang Provincial Chapter announced on April 22 that it has expelled Jinho City Mayor Cho Kyuil, who declared his intention to run as an independent candidate in the local elections, and has barred him from rejoining the party for five years.

On this day, Mayor Cho held a press conference and, raising objections to the nomination process of the provincial chapter, declared his independent candidacy by stating, "Without the protection of a political party, I will look only to the citizens and start anew."

The provincial ethics committee stated regarding Mayor Cho's expulsion, "We have consistently responded to acts that disrupt party order—such as not accepting the party's nomination results and leaving the party, running as an independent, or defecting to another party—based on strict criteria, and this action was also carried out according to those principles."

The committee further explained, "Even after participating in the nomination screening, Mayor Cho did not respect the final decision of the provincial nomination committee and chose to leave the party and run as an independent solely for personal gain. This constitutes a serious violation, as it denies the party’s official candidate selection procedures and undermines the fundamental order of the organization."

Additionally, the committee pointed out, "Changing one's affiliation and continuing to run for office according to the nomination results is a political act that is often criticized as so-called 'migratory bird politics.' Such actions are irresponsible and undermine the trust of party members and supporters."

Choi Hakbeom, Chair of the Provincial Ethics Committee, stated, "Leaving the party and running as an independent in protest of the nomination results cannot be justified under any pretext. Responding firmly based on consistent standards is the way to protect the fairness and credibility of the organization."

The provincial ethics committee plans to apply the same standards and take strict measures against similar cases until June 3, the date of the 9th nationwide simultaneous local elections, and will maintain its disciplinary stance according to principle.

Previously, the provincial ethics committee expelled Kang Myungsang, former preliminary candidate for Changwon Mayor, who defected to the Reform Party and declared his candidacy after rejecting the party's nomination decision; Jeong Seongdong, former vice chair of the provincial chapter, who became the head of the Reform Party's South Gyeongsang provincial chapter founding preparation committee and chapter chair; and Kim Changhwan, former preliminary candidate for Uiryeong County Governor, who left the party during the nomination screening and moved to the Democratic Party of Korea. All have been barred from rejoining the party for five years.

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