Song Eonseok Vows to Quickly Form Innovation Committee for Reform...Aims to Shed Pro-Yoon and Yeongnam Party Labels

"Restoring Public Sentiment in the Seoul Metropolitan Area... Becoming a Truly National Party Again"
Meetings with Kim Byungki and Kang Hunsik... Seeking Bipartisan Cooperation
Differences over Standing Committees and Supplementary Budget... Conflict Inevitable

Song Eonseok, the newly appointed floor leader of the People Power Party, announced on the 17th, "I will promptly push for the formation of an innovation committee to achieve swift and bold reforms within the party." This is interpreted as an expression of his determination to carry out genuine reforms by shedding the labels of being pro-Yoon (pro-Yoon Suk-yeol) and a TK (Daegu-Gyeongbuk) figure. On his first day in office, Song plans to meet with his counterpart, Kim Byungki, acting leader and floor leader of the Democratic Party, to explore ways to achieve bipartisan cooperation.

Song Eonseok, floor leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 17th. 2025.6.17 Photo by Kim Hyunmin

At the floor strategy meeting held at the main building of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the same day, Song stated, "We will discuss and widely gather opinions on the overall structural reform of the party system, including the five major reform proposals suggested by Emergency Committee Chairman Kim Yongtae," adding, "The goal is to become a truly national party once again." He emphasized, "The core is to restore public sentiment in the Seoul metropolitan area," and said, "We will closely analyze the public sentiment in the metropolitan area, especially in Incheon and Gyeonggi, where we suffered a crushing defeat in the presidential election." In particular, he pointed out, "Since the launch of the new administration, housing prices in Seoul have been soaring. We will become a competent policy party that first presents reasonable alternatives to this issue."

Song, who is from the Yeongnam region, openly received support from the pro-Yoon faction in the recent floor leader election. As a result, after being elected floor leader with 60 votes out of 106 lawmakers who participated in the caucus vote the previous day?a majority?political circles evaluated that the People Power Party "chose stability over reform." A party official commented, "From the Yeongnam region's perspective, the floor leader position is not one to be conceded," adding, "The fact that Kim Sungwon, who was backed by the pro-Han faction, received only 30 votes also reflects the current internal situation."

Song must resolve the internal divisions that have grown during the period of martial law and the early presidential election, and strengthen the party's presence as a minority opposition party to lay the groundwork for victory in next year's local elections. To achieve this, the first task is party reform, which is complicated by significant differences in opinion among factions. He said, "We can only regain the public's trust if we unite as one," and called for "bringing together internal voices through politics of inclusion and tolerance."

Song also expressed his willingness to cooperate with the government and the ruling party. He said, "Now, as a minority party, we must build policy capabilities and take the lead in communication and cooperation," adding, "It is also a time when the ruling party, which holds an overwhelming majority of seats in the National Assembly, needs goodwill and generosity to recognize the minority opposition as a dialogue partner." Song's position is that "we will negotiate strategically, giving what needs to be given and receiving what needs to be received."

In the afternoon, Song is scheduled to meet consecutively with Democratic Party floor leader Kim Byungki, Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hunsik, and Senior Presidential Secretary for Political Affairs Woo Sangho. Although Song has emphasized cooperation, given the significant differences in positions between the ruling and opposition parties on various pending issues, confrontation appears inevitable. The parties are currently at odds over the supplementary budget and the confirmation hearing for the Prime Minister. In particular, Song maintains that the chairmanship of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee should return to the opposition, but the Democratic Party has a strong stance of "no concession," making negotiations unlikely to be easy.