[Presidential Candidate]⑥ Hong Jun-pyo Strengthens Position Within Party by Advocating 'No Mercenaries' Policy

Following the People Power Party's stance, maintaining 'impeachment rejection' position
Na Kyung-won "Strongly agree with Hong's mercenary opposition"
Experience after Park Geun-hye impeachment likely advantageous for presidential election

Hong Joon-pyo, the mayor of Daegu, has positioned himself as a true conservative by criticizing President Yoon Seok-yeol and People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon as mercenaries. Since the emergency martial law incident on December 3, he has been using his characteristic blunt rhetoric to rally conservative unity. Attention is focused on whether Mayor Hong, who had been sidelined to Daegu after being overshadowed by President Yoon, can achieve the dreams he could not fulfill in the early presidential election phase.

Mayor Hong maintained his opposition to President Yoon's impeachment motion until just before the vote. This contrasted with some local government heads who shifted to support impeachment. As if anticipating the impeachment vote, on the afternoon of the 13th, one day before the motion was tabled, he wrote on his Facebook, "If only 90 people unite, we can overcome the impeachment crisis." On the 14th, the impeachment motion against President Yoon was ultimately passed, with 85 votes against it.

Usually more interested in public opinion than party lines, Mayor Hong aligned with the People Power Party's stance this time. His actions are interpreted as an effort to solidify his position within the party ahead of the upcoming presidential election. Compared to his popularity among the general public, his appeal to party members is relatively weak. In the final primary of the People Power Party presidential candidate race in November 2021, Mayor Hong led President Yoon by 10 percentage points in general public polls but lost by 23 percentage points in party member votes, conceding the candidacy to President Yoon.

After the martial law incident, Mayor Hong has also taken the lead in a public opinion campaign to oust Leader Han. He has made strong statements such as, "This impeachment is the impeachment of our party’s two mercenaries, not the impeachment of Korea’s conservative forces," and "Pus does not become flesh. Start by clearing out Han Dong-hoon (the leader) and the lemmings." Some support has emerged within the party as well. Representative Na Kyung-won expressed, "I strongly agree with Mayor Hong Joon-pyo’s mercenary rejection theory."

If the Constitutional Court upholds President Yoon’s impeachment, Mayor Hong is likely to be given a second chance sooner than expected. He will not miss this opportunity. Mayor Hong has experience running for president as the Liberty Korea Party candidate after the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye, during which he was also a local government head (Governor of Gyeongnam Province). Now serving as the mayor of Daegu, attention is on whether he can seize another opportunity.