Jo Jung-hoon "White Paper to Be Released in Mid-June"
Holding Meetings in Regions Defeated in Next Week's General Election
Hwang Woo-yeo, the Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, asked the general election white paper task force (TF) to engage in forward-looking discussions for future elections rather than pointing fingers at specific individuals.
On the 10th, after meeting with Chairman Hwang at the central party office, Jo Jeong-hoon, the head of the People Power Party's general election white paper TF, told reporters, "Chairman Hwang asked us to approach this with the mindset that we are writing with our lives on the line and creating the textbook for the next election." He added, "However, he said that pointing out specific individuals is backward-looking, so he requested future-oriented discussions for upcoming elections and for the party to win." This comment is interpreted as a response to criticisms regarding the inclusion of questions such as "Was the Han Dong-hoon one-man system effective?" in the general election white paper survey, which some see as trying to place responsibility on former Emergency Response Committee Chairman Han Dong-hoon.
Chairman Hwang is also reported to have expressed the opinion that "various aspects of the Democratic Party's general election white paper should be compared with ours, and the opinions of both losing and winning candidates should be sufficiently reflected."
The results of the general election white paper are scheduled to be released around mid-June. Jo's plan is to disclose the white paper, which will include the causes of the election defeat and reform proposals, before the party convention so that party leader candidates can engage in a wide-ranging debate. The survey results, which began last week, are also expected to be announced as early as next week. Jo said, "I have not yet received the official results of the survey, but I believe that more than half of the 254 candidates who ran in the general election should respond." He added, "We will check the response rates from aides, party officials, and reporters, review the data, and then make a decision."
They are also coordinating in-depth interviews with individuals who participated in decision-making during the 22nd general election. When asked if he was arranging an in-depth interview with former Emergency Response Committee Chairman Han Dong-hoon and former Nomination Committee Chairman Jeong Young-hwan, Jo said, "I am coordinating the schedule with Chairman Jeong and have also started coordinating with the Presidential Office," but he avoided answering regarding Chairman Han. However, contact to hear Chairman Han's opinions is expected to continue. On the same day, Jo appeared on BBS Radio's 'Jeon Young-shin's Morning Journal' and said, "(Former Chairman Han) is a very important asset to our party and is almost the best in terms of individual skills." He added, "I hope he recovers from the exhaustion of leading this election and comes back upgraded."
The general election white paper TF plans to hold regional meetings starting next week in areas where the party was defeated in the general election, such as Seoul, Gyeonggi, Chungcheong, and Honam, to listen to public opinion.
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