Ahn Cheol-soo, People Power Party Leader Candidate
Yoon Calls Him a "National Administration Disruptor," Halts Schedule on the 6th
Crucial Battle Over General Election Nomination Rights
[Asia Economy reporters Baek Kyunghwan and Lee Hyunju] Ahn Cheol-soo, a member of the People Power Party running for party leader in the '3·8 Party Convention,' temporarily suspended his official schedule on the 6th. This comes just one day after a direct confrontation with the Presidential Office over his remarks about the 'Yoon-Ahn Alliance' (an alliance between President Yoon Seok-yeol and candidate Ahn Cheol-soo). It appears that latent conflicts between President Yoon and Ahn, which surfaced during the last presidential election unification process, have now come to light, drawing attention to the outcome of the power struggle between the two sides over the nomination rights for next year's National Assembly general election.
Ahn's camp announced on the same day, "The postponement of some of Ahn's schedules is to assess the situation and plan the political landscape." Kim Young-woo, the election committee chairman of Ahn Cheol-soo's campaign, explained, "It is a breather to plan the political landscape," adding, "In an overly heated primary, we plan to develop more detailed ideas for a policy vision contest."
Ahn Cheol-soo, a candidate for the People Power Party leadership, is holding a press conference related to the party convention at the National Assembly on the 3rd. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@
After the Presidential Office released President Yoon Seok-yeol's statement the previous day, saying, "Those who seek political gain by using the baseless term ‘Yoon Core Group’ will henceforth be recognized as disruptors and enemies of state governance," Ahn responded by accusing it of "election interference," leading to a direct confrontation between the two sides, which seems to have caused political pressure. Kim, the election committee chairman, said, "In the ruling party's convention, all candidates claim cooperation and unity with the president," and explained, "Candidate Ahn also used the term 'alliance' in the context of the importance of cooperation with the president. There was no other meaning." He added, "We will keep in mind the Presidential Office's concerns about fair elections and do our best for the success of the convention."
Lee Jin-bok, Senior Secretary for Political Affairs at the Presidential Office, reportedly met with Jeong Jin-seok, the party's Emergency Response Committee chairman, the previous day and conveyed President Yoon's opinion that "Ahn Cheol-soo should be sternly warned for trying to involve the president." Jeong told reporters at the National Assembly that day, "It is true that I pointed out and warned about some of Candidate Ahn's remarks."
Analysts suggest that the Presidential Office's move to check Candidate Ahn despite the controversy over "election interference" stems from the fact that Ahn does not represent President Yoon's governance philosophy. From last year's controversy over the policy of enrolling five-year-olds in elementary school to the response during the Itaewon tragedy, Ahn has shown positions different from those of the Presidential Office and the ruling party. Contrary to President Yoon's stance that the situation must be organized first, Ahn demanded the immediate dismissal of responsible officials such as former Deputy Minister of Education Park Soon-ae and Police Commissioner Yoon Hee-geun.
There is also an analysis that the root cause lies in the differing policy orientations regarding the introduction of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system. A ruling party official from the Presidential Office said, "In terms of security, which should be addressed first during a regime change, Candidate Ahn opposed the past THAAD deployment, effectively expressing a path different from the Yoon administration's philosophy," adding, "If such gaps continue to appear while coordinating all national agenda areas, the identity will eventually be shaken."
Another Presidential Office official added, "The party leadership and the president are the closest partners in state governance, and in a National Assembly situation where the ruling party is in the minority, it is important to quickly synchronize," emphasizing, "A leadership that can swiftly implement the Yoon administration's national agenda without friction is needed." Since next year's general election will serve as a midterm evaluation of the president and it is the second year of the administration, a time to devote all efforts to national tasks, there is a limit to working with a leadership of a different wavelength.
Especially since the leadership to be elected this time will hold the nomination rights for next year's general election, the power structure of the ruling party after the convention could determine the success or failure of President Yoon's remaining governance. For Candidate Ahn, this party leadership challenge could be a turning point in his political career to establish a party base after last year's merger and to challenge the next presidential election.
Therefore, the clashes between the two sides are further intensifying conflicts between the pro-Yoon (pro-Yoon Seok-yeol) and non-Yoon factions within the party. Non-Yoon faction candidates running in this convention started a 'Yoon Core Group Resignation Movement' in front of the National Assembly on the same day. This was their first joint campaign. Cheon Ha-ram, chairman of the Suncheon-gap party committee, Representative Heo Eun-ah, former youth supreme council member Kim Yong-tae, and Gyeonggi Provincial Assembly member Lee Gi-in gathered in one place, holding placards such as 'Nomination rights to 1 million party members,' 'Yoon Core Group, the treacherous helpers, resign,' and 'Principled politics without bargaining,' directly meeting citizens and party members.
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