Presidential Office Faces Controversy Over Ruling Party Leadership Election Intervention... An, Cheon, Hwang Say "Kim Ki-hyun Must Resign" (Comprehensive)

Request Direct Support for Administrative Officer Candidate Kim
"Serious Legal Violation of Civil Servant Political Neutrality"
"Must Defeat Nuisance Candidate Kim with Party Members' Power"

In the People Power Party's March 8 party convention, the question of whether the presidential office intervened has emerged as a last-minute variable. After a partial recording was reported in which a presidential office administrator directly asked party members for support for candidate Kim Gi-hyeon in a KakaoTalk chatroom, candidates Ahn Cheol-soo, Chun Ha-ram, and Hwang Kyo-ahn strongly called for Kim's withdrawal. This is interpreted as an attempt to attract votes from the anti-Yoon (non-Yoon Seok-yeol) faction at the last moment.

Candidate Ahn Cheol-soo held an emergency press conference at the National Assembly Members' Office Building on the 6th, stating, "If true, it is a very serious issue that the presidential office intervened in the party representative election," and pointed out, "It is a grave violation that damages party democracy and directly breaches Article 7 of the Constitution, which mandates political neutrality of public officials, constituting a serious criminal act."

Ahn Cheol-soo (from the left), Hwang Kyo-ahn, Kim Ki-hyun, and Chun Ha-ram, candidates for the party leader of the People Power Party, are holding hands and greeting at the 3rd Party Convention Seoul·Incheon·Gyeonggi Joint Speech Meeting held at Goyang Gymnasium in Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do on the 2nd. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Ahn said, "We are painfully reminded of this through the case where a former president was convicted and sentenced to two years in prison," adding, "Despite such circumstances, the fact that the presidential office intervened in the party's internal election is beyond shocking and cannot be overlooked."

The Kyunghyang Shinmun reported that a presidential office official from the Civil Society Office requested party members to disseminate promotional materials supporting candidate Kim in a KakaoTalk group chat. It is also reported that they have secured recordings containing specific circumstances.

Ahn said, "The party must also take action," urging the presidential office to actively explain and for the Emergency Response Committee and the Election Committee to step forward. If proven true, he said, "Candidate Kim must withdraw."

Ahn Cheol-soo, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, is leaving after an emergency press conference held at the National Assembly Members' Office Building in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 6th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Candidate Hwang also stated, "Candidate Kim must withdraw immediately." On the same day, Hwang emphasized on his Facebook, "I knew something like this would happen," adding, "That is why I repeatedly warned about candidate Kim Gi-hyeon acting as if the president was pushing him forward and engaging in presidential flattery."

Candidate Chun also said, "Why is candidate Kim Gi-hyeon causing such a big nuisance to the presidential office?" and "The presidential office administrator as well. How much more embarrassment must be caused to party members?"

He continued, "How desperate must it have been to go this far? Candidate Kim Gi-hyeon himself is a nuisance candidate causing great harm to the president," and expressed, "We must correct this with the power of party members. We must vote out the nuisance candidate Kim Gi-hyeon."