Acceptance of Election Committee Formation and Secretary-General Replacement Demands
Announcement of National Committee and Party Convention Schedules... Effectively Setting a Deadline for Unification
Additional Election Strategy Discussions Scheduled for May 6 Lawmakers' Assembly
The People Power Party launched the 21st Presidential Election Countermeasures Committee on May 5, accepting the demands of presidential candidate Kim Moonsoo.
According to the People Power Party on May 6, Chief Spokesperson Shin Dongwook announced that the party held an Emergency Response Committee meeting the previous afternoon and approved the formation plans for the Central Election Countermeasures Committee and the city and provincial election committees. This comes just two days after Kim Moonsoo was elected as the party's presidential candidate on May 3.
Previously, Kim's camp issued a statement after the formation of the election committee was delayed due to internal calls for unification with former Prime Minister Han Ducksoo, another presidential contender. The statement argued that any infringement on the presidential candidate's priority in party affairs (as stipulated in Article 74 of the party constitution) must cease immediately, and demanded the immediate formation of the election committee and the prompt appointment of party officials nominated by the candidate.
In contrast, the party leadership immediately pushed back against Kim's position. Secretary-General Lee Yangsoo stated in a media briefing, "Under no law is full authority granted to the candidate. Kim's camp must immediately stop acting as if they are above the party constitution and regulations." He added, "The party's highest decision-making bodies are, in order, the party convention, the National Committee, the Standing National Committee, and the Supreme Council, and the authority to adopt the party line lies with the general assembly of lawmakers."
After Kim effectively rejected former Prime Minister Han's proposal for a meeting, the party leadership convened a general assembly of lawmakers at 8 p.m. the previous day to gather opinions. Emergency Response Committee Chairman Kwon Youngse stated, "We must achieve candidate unification within the next four to five days," and pressured Kim by saying, "There are those who naively believe that if we drag this out, unification will inevitably favor our side."
Kwon Youngse National Assembly Emergency Response Committee Chairman and Kwon Seongdong Floor Leader are attending the party members' meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on the 5th. Photo by Yonhap News
Meanwhile, Chairman Kwon, Floor Leader Kwon Seongdong, and Chief of Staff Kang Myunggu met with Kim, after which the Emergency Response Committee convened and agreed on the formation of the election committee.
The party leadership appointed Emergency Response Committee Chairman Kwon Youngse as the Standing Election Committee Chairman. Floor Leader Kwon Seongdong, as well as lawmakers Joo Hoeyoung, Na Kyungwon, and Ahn Cheolsoo, former Emergency Response Committee Chairman Hwang Woo-yeo, and former lawmaker Yang Hyangja were named as Co-Chairs. Lawmaker Yoon Jaeok was appointed as the General Election Headquarters Chief, and lawmaker Yoo Sangbeom was named as the Unification Promotion Headquarters Chief. The replacement of Secretary-General Lee, whose resignation was requested by Kim's camp, will be discussed at a later time.
Chief Spokesperson Shin stated regarding the timing of unification with independent candidate Han, "No conclusion has been reached today, but we hope to finalize the schedule as soon as possible," adding, "The Unification Headquarters will act as quickly as possible."
The People Power Party will also hold another general assembly of lawmakers on May 6 to discuss unification and strategies for the presidential election.
Additionally, the party announced that it will convene a National Committee meeting from May 8 to 11 and a party convention from May 10 to 11. The National Committee meeting will be held remotely, using an ARS voting system.
Although the party stated that the date, location, and agenda for the party convention will be announced later, given that May 10 to 11 is the registration period for presidential candidates, some interpret this as effectively setting a deadline for unification.
Kim Moonsoo, the People Power Party presidential candidate, is delivering his acceptance speech after being confirmed as the final candidate at the 5th party convention held at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province on May 3, 2025. Photo by Yoon Dongju
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