Progressive Party from 1.6% to 39%, First Lawmaker Elected... What Happened in 3 Years?

'Jinbodang' with Minimal Presence Makes First Entry into the National Assembly
Breeze in the 2020 General Election, Typhoon in 2023

The election of Kang Seong-hee, the Progressive Party candidate, in the Jeonbuk Jeonju-eul National Assembly by-election is a noteworthy point to watch. Although the Democratic Party did not field a candidate, it is unusual for a progressive party to win in a Democratic stronghold. In fact, there was an independent candidate with Democratic Party colors and a ruling People Power Party candidate, but the joy of victory went to the Progressive Party.

By securing the only National Assembly by-election this year, the Progressive Party has put the People Power Party, Democratic Party, and Justice Party in an awkward position. In the 21st general election, the Progressive Party’s predecessor, the Minjung Party, ran in Jeonbuk and received only 1.57% (15,607 votes) of the party vote. However, in the April 5 by-election for Jeonbuk Jeonju-eul, candidate Kang Seong-hee won with 39.07% (17,382 votes).

The runner-up was independent candidate Lim Jeong-yeop, who received 32.11% (14,288 votes). Ahn Hae-uk, an independent candidate who exposed the so-called 'Julie allegations' surrounding Kim Geon-hee, wife of President Yoon Seok-yeol, came in third with 4,515 votes (10.1%), followed by independent candidate Kim Ho-seo with 4,071 votes (9.2%). Kim Kyung-min of the People Power Party ranked fifth with 3,561 votes (8.00%).

Jinbo Party candidate Kang Seong-hee, who was elected in the 4·5 by-election for the Jeonju-eul National Assembly member re-election, is raising both arms. Photo by Yonhap News

This election is analyzed to have been influenced by the 'Yoon Seok-yeol judgment theory.' Kang, the winner, made judging the Yoon Seok-yeol administration and ousting opportunistic politicians his main slogans. In his victory speech, he said, "I believe this is the expression of Jeonju citizens’ desire for new politics by judging Yoon Seok-yeol’s prosecutorial dictatorship through the Progressive Party’s Kang Seong-hee," adding, "I will engrave the great choice of Jeonju citizens who restored the pride of Jeonju, the first place for political reform, in my heart and fight against the prosecutorial dictatorship through the unity of progressive democratic forces."

His locally focused political approach also played a role. Kang pledged to provide 1 million won in high inflation support funds and enact the 'Three Laws to Lower Loan Interest Rates.' He also proposed developing the former Daehan Textile site into a financial hub complex center, relocating the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation headquarters, attracting financial public enterprises including Korea Investment Corporation, establishing a Jeonbuk-type public bank, fostering Hyundai Motor’s Jeonju plant as a specialized hydrogen commercial vehicle base, and completing a hydrogen city through a hydrogen alliance between Jeonju and Wanju.

This is the Progressive Party’s first entry into the National Assembly since its founding in 2020. It is the first time in eight years since the dissolution of its predecessor, the Unified Progressive Party. In 2015, Unified Progressive Party lawmaker Lee Sang-gyu lost his seat due to the party’s dissolution, and the party fell outside the National Assembly.

The Progressive Party’s presence had been minimal. Although it rebranded from the Minjung Party to the Progressive Party in June 2020 for a fresh start, it failed to attract public attention and even faced extinction concerns. In the April 7, 2021 Seoul mayoral by-election, its candidate received only 12,272 votes (0.25%), and in the 2022 presidential election, then co-representative Kim Jae-yeon ran but garnered only 37,366 votes (0.11%), placing fifth.

Photo by Yonhap News

However, in this election, Kang won comfortably by about a 7 percentage point margin. From the perspective of the Justice Party, the largest progressive party alongside the major two parties, the Progressive Party’s advance may be seen as a kind of warning.

Traditionally, Jeonju-eul is a 'Democratic Party stronghold,' but the party decided not to field a candidate in this election. Since the by-election was held due to the invalidation of former Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Sang-jik’s election, the party chose not to run a candidate as a matter of responsible politics.

However, two former Democratic Party candidates ran in this election. Lim Jeong-yeop and Kim Ho-seo ran as independents after leaving the Democratic Party in protest of the party’s no-candidacy decision. Notably, Lim received support from Park Ji-won, former National Intelligence Service director and recent Democratic Party advisor. Although the Democratic Party distanced itself, saying this went against party policy, the party’s background indirectly influenced the election.

The People Power Party, despite full support from the central party, ranked fifth. Jeonju-eul was a closely contested district in the 20th general election, where then People Power Party candidate Jeong Un-cheon narrowly defeated Democratic Party candidate Choi Hyung-jae by 111 votes. However, in this election, Kim Kyung-min’s vote share did not reach 10%, even lower than that of independent candidate Ahn Hae-uk, who has no ties to the Jeonju area.

The Justice Party is similarly in an awkward position. The Progressive Party’s victory threatens the Justice Party’s status as the third party in Jeonbuk. As the third party in the National Assembly and a representative progressive party, the Justice Party did not even field a candidate in this election. The party explained that its candidate was suddenly unable to run, but the failure to field a candidate seems related to the recent crisis the Justice Party is facing, including declining support.

Meanwhile, although this is the Progressive Party’s first entry into the National Assembly, there was controversy over representativeness due to low voter turnout. According to the Jeonbuk Provincial Election Commission, out of 166,922 eligible voters in the Jeonju-eul National Assembly by-election, 44,729 voted, resulting in a turnout rate of 26.8%.