[Politics, That Day...] Son Hak-gyu's Political Experiment Embraced by Mandeoksan's Arms

After the July 30, 2014 By-election Defeat, Moved to Gangjin Todamjip
Descended Mt. Mandeoksan in 2016, Returned to Politics... Fourth Presidential Bid in 2021

[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.

Former Bareunmirae Party leader Sohn Hak-kyu. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

"My clear belief is that politicians must have a clear time to rise and fall." Politician Sohn Hak-kyu said this during a press conference at the National Assembly Press Hall on July 31, 2014, stating, "Now it is natural for me to step down."

At that time, the political world and the media interpreted politician Sohn Hak-kyu's statement as a declaration of ‘retirement from politics.’ Articles reflecting on Sohn Hak-kyu’s 21 years in politics followed.

As the standing advisor of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy, politician Sohn Hak-kyu ran for the July 30, 2014 by-election in the Suwon Byeong (Paldal) district but was defeated. Was that the end of his political career?

Politician Sohn Hak-kyu is a figure who established his own political domain in Korean politics, which was divided and confrontational between progressives and conservatives. It can be seen as a Korean version of the third way or as Sohn Hak-kyu-style politics.

He was a presidential candidate for both the Grand National Party and the Democratic Party. In the 2007 presidential election, he was ranked first as a presidential candidate in polls conducted among scholars and journalists. This indicates that his political qualifications were recognized.

After the press conference, politician Sohn Hak-kyu headed to a stone-walled house on Mandeoksan Mountain in Gangjin, Jeollanam-do. Gazing at the beautiful scenery of Gangjin Bay, what was he thinking? Embraced by Mandeoksan, politician Sohn Hak-kyu became a variable in Korean politics regardless of his own will.

Politicians who declare retirement from politics and then return are not few. In fact, a retirement declaration may be another form of politics for politicians. The political event of declaring retirement is an opportunity to spread one’s message to the public.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The problem is that reversing a retirement declaration itself entails political risk. For a politician who said they would leave politics to return, a ‘political justification’ is necessary. If the retirement is reversed without a clear justification, the meaning of the message conveyed when leaving is diminished.

What about politician Sohn Hak-kyu? He returned in October 2016, two years and three months after declaring retirement in July 2014. On October 20, 2016, he appeared at the National Assembly Press Hall, the same place where he declared retirement, and announced his political comeback.

At that time, various evaluations were made regarding his descent from Mandeoksan.

As the standing advisor of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy, he declared his departure from the Democratic Party upon his return to politics. It was a declaration that he would engage in politics in a new place, not the Democratic Party.

October 2016 was a time when the ‘Choi Soon-sil Gate’ scandal intensified, shaking the Park Geun-hye administration greatly. Ahead of the presidential election the following year, political realignment became the focus of attention. Politician Sohn Hak-kyu was one axis of this political realignment.

He served as the standing election campaign committee chairman for Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate of the People’s Party in 2017. Later, as the leader of the Bareunmirae Party, he worked to strengthen the power of the third political force.

The Bareunmirae Party exited real politics after a short party history. Politicians who were part of it chose their own paths. It seemed that politician Sohn Hak-kyu’s political experiment was coming to an end.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, politician Sohn Hak-kyu started another political experiment. On November 29, 2021, he declared his candidacy for the presidential election. He was not selected as a candidate from any specific party.

Politician Sohn Hak-kyu explained, “I have no money, no organization. I have no flashy pledges. It is a solo presidential election where I appeal directly to the people, shouting alone in the wilderness without a campaign.”

What is the reason for his ‘lonely challenge’?

“I will abolish the presidential system and open a new path of parliamentary-centered coalition politics.” It is an interesting point that a presidential candidate proposed abolishing the presidential system. Abolishing the presidential system itself is a controversial topic.

The status of politician Sohn Hak-kyu, who was once regarded as a leading presidential candidate, is not what it used to be. His choice, which could be his last presidential challenge in his political life, will lead to what result remains to be seen. Whether it can show the destructive power to shake up the presidential election landscape is something to watch.

However, politician Sohn Hak-kyu’s entry into the presidential race could serve as an opportunity to stimulate interest in the role of national leaders. It shifts the focus of the presidential race, which is often obsessed with opinion polls, back to the essence of the presidential election.

The reason we await the presidential election is the process in which a person dreaming of becoming president explains and is evaluated on what kind of world they want to create and what solutions they propose to build a new society.