Intense jockeying to decide who to nominate
Nomination and election outcomes likely to depend on pros and cons
After the conflict between President Yoon Suk-yeol and Han Dong-hoon, the Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, a game of cautious calculation is ongoing among the prospective candidates preparing for the general election within the party. Candidates are confused about which side to focus their so-called 'network marketing'?showcasing their connections?between President Yoon and Chairman Han. This reflects a facet of the changing power dynamics within the ruling party.
This situation is largely attributed to the tense standoff between the low presidential approval ratings and Chairman Han, who holds the nomination rights. Among the party’s prospective candidates, choices differ on whether to leverage their connections with President Yoon or Chairman Han based on perceived advantages and disadvantages.
Some prospective candidates are reportedly focusing on highlighting their connections with Chairman Han rather than President Yoon. This is seen as reflecting the high approval ratings of Chairman Han, who represents future power, and the effect of the government and ruling party having ended their vertical relationship amid the recent conflict with the presidential office. In fact, some candidates have been said to replace President Yoon’s photo on their business cards with that of Chairman Han or revise their career records to showcase their connections.
The nomination rights held by Chairman Han cannot be ignored either. In political circles, it is estimated that out of 121 constituencies in the metropolitan area, the People Power Party can strategically nominate candidates in about 70 districts, roughly 60%. In this case, even if the party emphasizes system-based nominations, the influence of the nomination management committee centered around Chairman Han inevitably increases.
Conversely, some candidates have been displaying their connections with President Yoon following the recent conflict. A representative example is Kim Ki-heung, a former deputy spokesperson of the presidential office and a prospective candidate for the People Power Party in Yeonsu-gu (Eul), Incheon. He recently changed his social network service (SNS) profile picture from one showing him with Chairman Han to a solo photo. Similarly, a prospective candidate in the Daejeon area changed their main social media photo to one of President Yoon after the conflict between the two figures.
An official from the People Power Party said, "Among candidates, it is understood that they adjust their careers and promote whichever figure is more advantageous for the election." He added, "It is a rare sight to see candidates divided between showcasing their connections with the president and those with the emergency committee chairman in a general election."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
