Hong Joon-pyo, the mayor of Daegu, criticized former People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok, who is reportedly pushing to establish a new party, saying, "If he leaves this time, it will be his second runaway," and pointed out that Lee's new party would have difficulty gaining momentum.
On the 16th, Mayor Hong said on his social media, "It feels like 泰山鳴動鼠一匹 (Taesan myeongdong su ilpil: The mountain shakes but only a mouse appears)," expressing this sentiment.
Although he did not explicitly name anyone, the phrase "If he leaves this time, it will be his second runaway" is interpreted as referring to former leader Lee. In the past, Mayor Hong also called Lee's departure from the party a "runaway," saying, "Is there any guarantee that someone who once ran away after a fling won't run away a second time?"
Mayor Hong issued a warning that even if Lee forms a new party this time, it would be difficult to grow its influence. He said, "One or two warning shots may cause concern, but continuous meaningless chatter has no impact at all," and added, "Even if a new party is formed under the banner of anti-Yoon, it will be hard to gather significant support now that ideological camps have solidified."
He continued, "A third-party new party should be a positive party different from existing parties, but if it remains solely negative as it is now, it is likely to become a bubble party," and said, "I believe he is clever enough to navigate this well, but he should take those from the Juche faction and pro-North figures who do not align with our party's identity."
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