Ruling Party Heats Up 'Yoo Seung-min Role Theory'... Jang Dong-hyuk Says "I Am Considering It"

The People Power Party is increasingly discussing the role of former Bareunmirae Party leader Yoo Seung-min. Although he was once at odds with President Yoon Seok-yeol, there are growing calls for a speaker other than Han Dong-hoon, the party’s Emergency Response Committee Chairman, to help boost the recently declining approval ratings, prompting consideration of Yoo’s potential role.

Former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min, who is running in the People Power Party's Gyeonggi Province governor primary, holds a press conference appealing for support at the National Assembly Communication Hall on the 19th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

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On the afternoon of the 26th, Jang Dong-hyuk, Secretary-General of the People Power Party, said at the party’s central office in Yeouido, Seoul, regarding Yoo’s role, “I understand there are various opinions and suggestions related to approval ratings,” adding, “To secure victory in the general election, we are considering not only speakers but also several other measures I mentioned earlier.”

Yoo is a figure who has taken a confrontational stance against President Yoon. Before Yoon announced his candidacy for the presidential election last October, when Yoon said, “Former President Chun Doo-hwan was good at politics,” Yoo strongly criticized him, saying, “It is shameful that such a person is running to be the conservative party’s presidential candidate.” Yoo continued his criticism even after Yoon’s election. When Kim Tae-woo, the People Power Party candidate, lost the by-election for the mayor of Gangseo District, Seoul, last October, Yoo assessed it as “President Yoon’s defeat.” Earlier this year, Yoo also argued that President Yoon should not exercise his veto power over the Itaewon Special Act.

Nevertheless, as the party’s approval ratings have recently entered a downward trend, the “Yoo Seung-min role theory” has emerged. According to a Realmeter poll conducted nationwide from the 21st to 22nd among 1,400 people aged 18 and over, the People Power Party’s support dropped by 0.8 percentage points from the previous survey to 37.1%. (For detailed information, refer to the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission website.) Chairman Han has also been in his position for about three months, and there are evaluations that his freshness is not what it used to be.

Within the party, the need for figures other than Chairman Han to step forward is continuously mentioned. Kim Sung-tae, Co-Chairman of the People Power Party’s Seoul Regional Election Countermeasures Committee, said on MBC Radio’s “Kim Jong-bae’s Focus” regarding Yoo’s role, “This is a desperate situation. If there is a good resource that can appeal to the public, no one should be excluded,” adding, “All election strategies, messages, and content are concentrated in Chairman Han’s mouth. It is undeniable that Chairman Han is under a heavy burden.”

Hong Seok-jun, Deputy Director of the People Power Party’s Central Election Countermeasures Committee Situation Room, said at a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office on the morning of the same day, “Candidates Won Hee-ryong, Na Kyung-won, and Ahn Cheol-soo are feeling a significant lack of speakers because their own constituencies’ elections are difficult,” adding, “Although there is not much time left, the party is urgently looking for someone who can play the role of a speaker thinking about the future of the Republic of Korea.”

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