[Politics, That Day...] Hong Jun-pyo, the Only Person Who Has Experienced Being the 'Leader' of Both Hannara Party and Korean Party

2011 Hannara Party Leadership Election Opens Hong Jun-pyo Era... Returns to People Power Party Not Achieved, Remains Independent

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Jeong-min]

Editor's Note‘Politics, That Day...’ is a series planning corner that looks back on Korean politics through the ‘recollection of memories’ related to scenes, events, or figures that deserve attention.

The figure known as a non-mainstream member of the pro-Lee Myung-bak faction, ‘Politician Hong Joon-pyo,’ was the protagonist of that day. On July 4, 2011, at the Hannara Party convention held at the Seoul Olympic Gymnastics Arena, he was elected as the Hannara Party leader. From the perspective of political engineering, his election was an upset, but the political situation at the time was already signaling his victory.

The election to choose the ruling party leader during the latter half of the Lee Myung-bak administration was fiercely competitive. The candidates were formidable figures: Yoo Seung-min, Na Kyung-won, Won Hee-ryong, Nam Kyung-pil, Park Jin, and Kwon Young-se. The reason why the launch of Hong Joon-pyo’s Hannara Party leadership was perceived as a ‘turning point in political history’ was due to the assessment of the decline of the pro-Lee faction.

If one were to categorize, he could be called broadly pro-Lee, but as a politician who lived as a non-mainstream figure, Hong Joon-pyo’s election was closely related to the complex internal party dynamics. At that time, candidate Hong Joon-pyo, who received support from some pro-Lee members and senior pro-Park (pro-Park Geun-hye faction) figures, was elected with 41,666 votes, accounting for 25.5% of the vote.

Won Hee-ryong, who was supported by key pro-Lee figures, received 29,086 votes (17.8%) and placed fourth. Second place went to Yoo Seung-min with 32,157 votes (19.7%), third place to Na Kyung-won with 29,722 votes (18.2%), and fifth place to Nam Kyung-pil with 14,896 votes (9.1%).

Hong Joon-pyo, elected as Hannara Party leader, expressed his thoughts on winning: “The will of the delegates who gave me the last chance in an election where I ran alone without factional support is accepted as a hope to create a united Hannara Party and to surely win the general and presidential elections next year.”

As he said, the 19th general election and the 18th presidential election in 2012 resulted in victories for the Hannara Party side. The Hannara Party changed its name to Saenuri Party and won both nationwide elections held in 2012.

The reason Politician Hong Joon-pyo has a unique political career is that he is the only politician who has served as the party leader of both the Hannara Party and the Liberty Korea Party, which can be considered the mainstream conservative parties. Due to the Liberty Korea Party’s short three-year history, only two party leaders were elected through party conventions, and Politician Hong Joon-pyo and Politician Hwang Kyo-ahn were those leaders.

Politician Hong Joon-pyo was elected on July 3, 2017, at the Liberty Korea Party convention held at the National Assembly Memorial Hall with an overwhelming support of 51,891 votes, accounting for 65.74%. Although Won Yoo-chul and Shin Sang-jin ran as competitors, the party’s support was concentrated on candidate Hong Joon-pyo.

Hong Joon-pyo, leader of the Liberty Korea Party, is holding a press conference on the 27th Inter-Korean Summit at the party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 30th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

He is one of the most important figures when reviewing the history of conservative parties, but he currently remains an independent.

Although he did not receive a nomination in the April 21st general election, he ran as an independent candidate in the Daegu Suseong district and was elected. He was the Liberty Korea Party’s presidential candidate in 2017 but did not receive a nomination in the April 2020 general election. He promised to rebuild the party as his first remark after winning.

After hearing the confirmation of his election on April 16, Hong Joon-pyo pledged, “I will promptly return to the party and play a role in strengthening it.” His political vision at the time included the following:

“I have already served as party leader twice. Therefore, I do not intend to seize party leadership again. However, our party has lost its identity and become a mixed party. I will make it a party that firmly establishes the conservative right-wing position. I will solidify the conservative right-wing ideology and identity and restart so that we can bring the regime back in 2022.”

[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, Politician Hong Joon-pyo’s status remains independent. Voices calling for his return to the People Power Party are also emerging within the party. With the People Power Party accepting the return of independent lawmaker Kwon Seong-dong, attention is also focused on Hong Joon-pyo’s potential homecoming, but the outcome is uncertain.

Hong Joon-pyo’s return to the party means more than just adding one more lawmaker. It is the return of a figure who was a candidate in the most recent presidential election. The current leadership line of the People Power Party inevitably has complex feelings about this.

Politician Hong Joon-pyo’s next goal is the 2022 presidential election. Will he get a chance to heal the pain of his 2017 presidential defeat? On the 17th, he left this post on his Facebook:

“When I go home, I watch a drama about Sima Yi, who navigated the extreme moments during the great chaos of the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period over 1,800 years ago in China. I am fascinated by his endless patience, endurance of submission, and his mysterious strategies that led him to the top after waiting for a long 50 years, sometimes watching the drama late into the night. Just as in the time when Sima Yi lived, South Korea is now also plunged into great chaos.”