"Election Strategy Relying on Jeon Gwang-hoon's Influence"
Large Audience Mobilization... Minimal General Election Results
Kim Jae-won, a Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, mentioned Pastor Jeon Gwang-hoon of Sarang Jeil Church. While it is relatively common for politicians to showcase their connections with religious circles to appeal to voters, the general analysis is that the political background influenced Kim’s decision to get involved in the controversy surrounding Jeon Gwang-hoon despite the criticism.
It is said that this behavior reflects an intention to leverage Pastor Jeon’s influence within the conservative camp. Opinions differ on whether Pastor Jeon’s ability to mobilize the public will actually exert influence in elections.
Pastor Jeon Gwang-hoon, classified as an extreme right-wing figure, is surrounded by numerous controversies. Although he served as the president of the Christian Council of Korea, he faces accusations of heresy and has been criticized for historical distortion remarks and offensive language.
Still, why does the conservative camp rely on Pastor Jeon? Every year on March 1st Independence Movement Day and Liberation Day, Pastor Jeon holds large-scale rallies in Gwanghwamun to showcase his support base. At last month’s “March 1st Ten Million Citizens Rally,” which gathered members of the conservative group Liberty Unification Party led by Pastor Jeon, the organizers estimated 50,000 attendees while the police estimated 40,000.
The reason politicians continue to emphasize their closeness to Pastor Jeon is analyzed as a carefully calculated general election strategy. On the 3rd, Cho Won-jin, leader of the Our Republican Party, appeared on YTN Radio’s “News King with Park Ji-hoon” and said, “Supreme Council member Kim is not a fool but a smart person. Even though he knows it’s risky, he has courted Pastor Jeon twice because he needs him. He must have burdened Pastor Jeon in some way.” He added, “Since Kim benefited the most in the primary and became a senior member (Supreme Council member), he is going all out to support Pastor Jeon.”
However, forecasts about Pastor Jeon’s influence in actual elections are divided. Many analyses suggest that the crowds at the Gwanghwamun rallies are not purely Pastor Jeon’s supporters but a combination of anti-Moon Jae-in government and Democratic Party forces, who were drawn in by statements like “former President Moon Jae-in should step down,” and supporters of former President Park Geun-hye. It is difficult to assume that everyone gathered at the rallies will vote for Pastor Jeon in elections.
In fact, Pastor Jeon has repeatedly faced defeat in general elections. Since his first attempt in the 17th general election in 2004 under the name Christian Party of Korea, he received a poor result even in the 2020 general election, his fifth attempt.
In that election, the Christian Liberty Unification Party, led by Pastor Jeon, garnered only 1.83% (513,159 votes), failing to enter the National Assembly. According to the Public Official Election Act, a party must secure at least 3% of the nationwide vote or win 5 or more constituency seats to obtain proportional representation seats.
In the same election, the Future United Party under Hwang Kyo-ahn’s leadership, which had promoted an alliance with Pastor Jeon through Christianity (currently the People Power Party with 84 seats), suffered a crushing defeat, losing to the Democratic Party, which won 163 seats.
However, the claim that Pastor Jeon can consolidate his support base in specific constituencies and influence the primary election to some extent is noteworthy.
Cheon Ha-ram, chairman of the Suncheon Gap district party committee in Jeollanam-do, expressed concern on the 3rd on CBS Radio’s “Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show” that while Pastor Jeon’s supporters are not threatening on a national scale, if they concentrate their strength in certain districts, they could distort the nomination results there. This is possible because party membership registration does not require verification of actual residence. Cheon estimated that at least 10,000 party members are influenced by Pastor Jeon’s power.
With the general election a year away, the People Power Party leadership is keeping a “distance” from Pastor Jeon. After the Supreme Council meeting on the 3rd, party leader Kim Ki-hyun told reporters, “No third party (Pastor Jeon) has the right to meddle in our party’s nomination rights,” drawing a clear line. “Pastor Jeon plays his role, and our party plays ours.”
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