Creating a Platform to Support Yoon Seok-yeol? ... Meeting Between Kim Jong-in and Geum Tae-seop

Meeting Arranged on Kim Jong-in's Proposal
Kept Quiet Saying No Other Talk

Geum Tae-seop "Heard Future Plans"
Third-Party Integration Discussions Officially Launched

Kim Jong-in, former emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, and Geum Tae-seop, former lawmaker, are having a breakfast meeting at the Chosun Hotel in Seoul on the 16th. Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers Group

[Asia Economy reporters Hyunju Lee, Boryeong Geum, and Juni Park] Discussions on the unification of the third opposition bloc, excluding the People Power Party and the People’s Party, who are soon to engage in merger talks, are now gaining momentum. The catalyst is former emergency committee chairman Kim Jong-in from the People Power Party and former Democratic Party lawmaker Geum Tae-seop, who has declared his intention to establish a new party. The critical issue is how to incorporate former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, who is reconsidering various political moves, including whether to join the People Power Party.

Former emergency committee chairman Kim and former lawmaker Geum held a sudden meeting on the morning of the 16th at a hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. It is known that the meeting was arranged at Kim’s initiative. After the meeting, Kim told Asia Economy, “I met (former lawmaker Geum) to thank him for helping us during the last election,” adding, “I did not discuss anything else.”

Former lawmaker Geum also told this publication over the phone, “He is a senior figure in politics and a senior mentor, so I shared my thoughts and listened to his plans for the future, but it is difficult to disclose specific details.” Geum further said, “Since he is someone I respect, I visit him to consult whenever I have concerns or issues.” This is interpreted as Geum, who is aiming to establish a new party and bring Yoon on board, seeking Kim’s advice.

The key question is whether former Prosecutor General Yoon will join the alliance between the two. If Yoon, who is leading the presidential approval ratings in first and second place, joins, the new party Geum is promoting could instantly surpass the political influence held by the People Power Party. However, since the third bloc’s party formation is unlikely to cooperate with the People Power Party in the future, some view this as a division within the opposition ahead of the presidential election.