'Pro-Chin Yoon Dominated' New Leadership... New Concerns Over 'Expansion'

With the new ruling party leadership formed as a result of the party convention, a large number of pro-Yoon (친윤) faction members have been positioned, leading to criticisms of a lack of inclusiveness. While the Yoo Seung-min faction and Na Kyung-won faction have been embraced respectively, opinions are divided over whether to include the 'Lee Jun-seok faction.' In the case of Assemblyman Ahn Cheol-soo, he was offered the position of Chair of the Science and Technology Special Committee but declined.

Kang Dae-sik, a nominated Supreme Council member from the 'Yoo Seung-min faction,' stated on the 14th on KBS's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strong Current Affairs,' "All four candidates who ran for party leader are, in a way, true treasures and assets of our party," adding, "I am one of those who prefer additive politics over subtractive politics. Representative Kim Ki-hyun received about 52.7% of the votes, and the other three candidates received about 47%, so we must also add that 47%," advocating for the inclusion of the Lee Jun-seok faction.

The leadership, promoting what is called the 'Yeonpotang (연포탕) lineup,' appointed Kang from the Yoo Seung-min faction as a nominated Supreme Council member and Kim Min-su, former party district committee chairman from the Na Kyung-won faction, as spokesperson, but the 'Lee Jun-seok faction' was not included in this lineup. Former People Power Party Assemblywoman Yoon Hee-sook evaluated on SBS's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show,' "Yeonpotang needs to be simmered for an appropriate amount of time, but it seems the broth hasn't fully developed yet."

Kim Ki-hyun, leader of the People Power Party, and Joo Ho-young, floor leader, along with other party leadership, are attending the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on the 13th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Within the party, there are differing opinions on whether to embrace the Lee Jun-seok faction. Supreme Council member Kim Jae-won believes alliance with Assemblyman Ahn is possible, but is skeptical about an alliance with former leader Lee Jun-seok and his faction, while Supreme Council member Tae Young-ho insists that the Lee Jun-seok faction should also be embraced. Kang Dae-sik can also be interpreted as supporting the inclusion of the Lee Jun-seok faction in principle.

However, there are criticisms that it is practically difficult to embrace the faction since former leader Lee has expressed a negative stance toward being embraced. Supreme Council member Kim Byung-min said on CBS's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' that "Even when good things are said, when Assemblyman Tae Young-ho said good things about former leader Lee yesterday, former leader Lee responded by saying 'Assemblyman Tae Young-ho is wrong,'" referring to Lee's reaction on SNS where he said, "Regarding this matter, Kim's words are more correct than Tae's."

Pro-Yoon (친윤) Assemblyman Kim Jeong-jae also pointed out on YTN's 'News King with Park Ji-hoon,' "Of course, he should be embraced, but if the person himself doesn't want to be embraced and says 'I don't want to be embraced,' you can't forcefully embrace him," adding, "Looking at former leader Lee's actions during the recent primary and before, he has caused significant conflicts within the party and has often said things harmful to the party."

The leadership reportedly emphasized 'one team' during a dinner with President Yoon Seok-yeol the previous day. Going forward, President Yoon and People Power Party leader Kim Ki-hyun have agreed to hold regular meetings twice a month to facilitate communication between the party and the government. This has led to concerns that President Yoon's control over the party will become stronger. The party is already dominated by pro-Yoon members, and this pro-Yoon color may become even more pronounced. Jeong Cheong-rae, Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said on KBS Radio, "Leader Kim will probably play the role of a channel and speaker conveying the president's instructions, coming back every two weeks after hearing the president's admonitions and taking notes. The People Power Party is really unfortunate," he said.