'Pro-Lee Jun-seok' Jung Mi-kyung also resigns... Lee at a crossroads (Summary)

Jung Mi-kyung "Tried to Prevent Confusion but Was Insufficient"
Lee Jun-seok & Kim Yong-tae Proposed Resigning Together Today but Did Not Come
Seo Byung-soo "President Yoon's Key Aide Should Meet and Talk with Lee"

Jeong Mi-kyung, Supreme Council Member of the People Power Party, holds a press conference to resign from her position as Supreme Council Member at the National Assembly on the 8th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy reporters Hyunju Lee and Hyunji Kwon] With Jeong Mi-kyung, a Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, announcing her resignation on the 8th, the return of Representative Lee Jun-seok has become even more uncertain. If the party constitution and regulations are amended after the National Committee meeting on the 9th, the appointment of an emergency response committee chairperson will become possible, resulting in the automatic dismissal of Representative Lee. Although Lee has mentioned legal responses such as injunction applications, there is also a sense that he might bring up different matters at the press conference scheduled for the 13th.

At a press conference held at the National Assembly main building on the same day, Supreme Council member Jeong declared, "The priority is to quickly resolve the party's chaotic situation. If my choice is necessary for the success of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, I believe it is an unavoidable decision," announcing her resignation. She emphasized, "I tried to prevent the chaos in any way possible, but it was insufficient," and added, "We must not let the time for regime change, given by the people, fail due to internal strife or division."

Jeong is known to be close to Representative Lee within the party. After the press conference, she told reporters, "Originally, I suggested that Representative Lee Jun-seok and Supreme Council member Kim Yong-tae resign together," adding, "I proposed and persuaded them last week and waited for their response."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

She continued, "Judging by the fact that they did not come today," but added, "(Representative Lee) really needs to look at the long term. He should not act only based on the 2030 generation’s position or momentary views but should lead this space," suggesting that legal procedures such as injunction applications should not be pursued. Jeong predicted that once legal procedures proceed, the party will become even more chaotic and strained.

With Jeong’s resignation, only Kim Yong-tae, the youth Supreme Council member, remains in the People Power Party’s Supreme Council. After Representative Bae Hyun-jin resigned first, Representatives Jo Su-jin and Yoon Young-seok also resigned. Considering the mass resignation of Supreme Council members and the decline in approval ratings, the People Power Party has judged the current situation as an emergency and plans to hold a National Committee meeting tomorrow to amend the party constitution and regulations to allow the acting party leader to appoint an emergency response committee chairperson. Representative Joo Ho-young, a five-term lawmaker, is reportedly the leading candidate for the emergency response committee chairperson. Kwon Seong-dong, acting party leader and floor leader of the People Power Party, plans to hold a virtual party meeting tomorrow afternoon to discuss these matters.

Some within the party believe that Representative Lee might resolve the issue politically rather than legally through injunction applications. Seo Byung-soo, chairman of the People Power Party National Committee, said in a radio interview on the same day, "We are politicians, aren’t we? I believe this is a problem that can be resolved through meetings and dialogue," adding, "The core of the problem lies in the conflict between Representative Lee Jun-seok and the key figures close to President Yoon Seok-yeol." He continued, "If these parties had met, communicated, and made efforts to understand each other’s positions, it would not have come to this," and said, "The first hand to be extended should be from those who are powerful and responsible, and Representative Lee should also meet now."

According to Representative Lee’s side, the date for filing an injunction application has not yet been decided.