Surprised by 'Anpung', Yoon Hakkwan... Criticizing Ahn Cheol-soo

Ahn Cheol-soo Leads Kim Ki-hyun in Core Support Base
"Kim Ki-hyun Is Not Pro-Yoon... Only Trusted by the President"
Ahn: "I Will Be a Candidate Who Supports Yoon's Strength, Not Just His Favor"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] From the first day of candidate registration for the People Power Party's March 8 party convention, pro-Yoon (pro-Yoon Suk-yeol) faction lawmakers launched an offensive against Ahn Cheol-soo. This appears to be an attempt to check Ahn, whose approval ratings have recently surged, and as Ahn's camp actively counters with the keyword 'presidential election unification,' the confrontation is intensifying.

According to a nationwide index survey conducted by Embrain Public, K-Stat Research, Korea Research, and Hankook Research from the 30th of last month to the 1st of this month targeting 1,001 men and women aged 18 and over (95% confidence level, sampling error ±3.1 percentage points, referenced from the National Election Commission), among People Power Party supporters (363 respondents), Ahn was identified as the most suitable candidate for the next party leader with 34%. Following him, Kim Ki-hyun received 20%, former leader Hwang Kyo-ahn 4%, and Yoon Sang-hyun and Cho Kyung-tae each 1%.

Considering proportions by region and age, the nationwide public opinion poll does not exactly match the composition of responsible party members who will decide the outcome of this party convention. This convention will be conducted with 100% party member voting. However, with former lawmaker Na Kyung-won's withdrawal, Kim's momentum has faltered, and literally an 'Ahn wind' is blowing. Following Na's withdrawal and even former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min, a representative 'non-Yoon (non-Yoon Suk-yeol)' figure within the party, stepping down, analysis suggests that the non-Yoon faction's party sentiment has consolidated around Ahn.

Ahn Cheol-soo, a member of the People Power Party, is registering as a candidate for party leader at the party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 2nd. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

'

"Fake Yoon Support Peddlers"... Pro-Yoon Faction Lawmakers Launch Full-Scale Offensive Against Ahn Cheol-soo

Because of this, Kim's camp, which initially engaged in 'Yoon support marketing,' is distancing itself from 'Yoon Hae-gwan (key associates of President Yoon Suk-yeol).' Pro-Yoon faction core lawmaker Lee Cheol-gyu of the People Power Party said to reporters at the plenary session, "Has Kim Ki-hyun ever said he is pro-Yoon himself? No," adding, "Kim Ki-hyun is not a Yoon Hae-gwan either." At the same time, he emphasized the weight of Yoon's intention by saying, "It is correct that the president trusts our Kim Ki-hyun." Lawmaker Park Soo-young also said on CBS Radio that he believes "Yoon's intention regarding Kim is 100% certain."

Park particularly viewed former lawmaker Na Kyung-won, who was dismissed from the vice-chair position of the Low Birthrate and Aging Society Committee by President Yoon, and Ahn as 'non-Yoon equals.' He said, "During the short two months of the transition period, candidate Ahn once disappeared for 24 hours," adding, "There must have been some dissatisfaction, and the same goes for the Na Kyung-won incident. The president places great importance on the weight of public office. He was very upset about someone holding public office disappearing for 24 hours." Lawmaker Lee also targeted Ahn on his SNS, stating, "Recently, if the president's intention lies with him, he peddles Yoon's intention, and by talking about cracks in the Kim-Jang alliance (Kim Ki-hyun-Jang Je-won), he is disturbing party sentiment beyond the bounds of decency." He also said, "The sight of fake Yoon support peddlers is unsightly."

There was also an explicit expression of dissatisfaction toward former lawmaker Kim Young-woo, who serves as the election campaign committee chairman for Ahn's camp. Kim Young-woo holds a position on the Presidential Committee on National Unity. Lawmaker Kim Jeong-jae criticized, "Public officials bear responsibility for their positions," and added, "Such a person is causing internal party strife to help a specific candidate and is sowing discord between the president and the party." Lawmaker Kang Min-guk also criticized, "No matter how urgent winning the party leader election is, publicly insulting the president and the party by playing media games to distinguish between Yoon's intention and pro-Yoon factions is unacceptable," and said, "Kim Young-woo, the campaign committee chairman who insulted the president and the party, should immediately resign from his position on the National Unity Committee."

Jang Je-won Declares "I Will Not Take a Party Position in the Next Party Leadership"

Jang Je-won, who served as chief of staff during his elected period, officially declared on this day, "I will not take a party position in the next party leadership." On Facebook, Jang said, "Some candidates' camps are spreading rumors about Jang Je-won as secretary-general and politically slandering me," adding, "They are trying to brand me as someone who distorts even the president's intentions for their political gain." Although the 'Kim-Jang alliance' was promoted and a 'Yoon intention rally' was launched, seeing the non-Yoon votes consolidating within the party, he lowered his profile.

Kim Ki-hyun, a member of the People Power Party, is leaving the reception desk after completing his registration as a candidate for party leader at the party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 2nd.

On the same day, Ahn's camp strongly protested. Lee Jong-cheol, chief spokesperson for Ahn's camp, issued a statement responding to pro-Yoon faction lawmaker Lee Yong's declaration to run for supreme council member, who criticized Ahn by saying, "I have doubts about whether the unification during last year's presidential election was sincerely done without personal or political interests," by saying, "Now you are even resorting to mind-reading to claim that the presidential election unification was not sincere." He added, "The results of unification with candidate Oh Se-hoon in 2021 and with candidate Yoon Suk-yeol in 2022 will be evaluated by party members."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

After registering as a candidate for party leader, Ahn said at the People Power Party central party office in Yeouido, Seoul, "If there had been no 'Yoon-Ahn (Yoon Suk-yeol and Ahn Cheol-soo) alliance,' how could we have unified the candidates in the last presidential election? Candidate unification is the 'Yoon-Ahn alliance,'" emphasizing, "A combination of a lawyer-turned-president and a scientist-turned-party leader is truly the best combination, one that the Democratic Party cannot imitate or follow."

In an interview with BBS Radio that day, Ahn said, "I will not be a peddler of Yoon's intention but rather a candidate who adds strength to Yoon," adding, "Combining Yongsan's approval ratings and the party's own efforts, if we fight the general election with that, we can win next year's general election."