Lee Junghyun, People Power Party Nomination Chief: "Incumbents Will Be Replaced If They Fall Short of Standards"

"Proceeding with 'tailored nominations' by region"

On February 22, Lee Junghyun, Chair of the People Power Party's Nomination Committee, announced that the party would apply strict standards to nominations for the June 3 local elections, including replacing incumbents who fall short of the criteria.

Lee Junghyun, Chair of the Nomination Committee, People Power Party. Reporter Heo Younghan

In a post on his personal social media account, uploaded 100 days before the local elections, Lee wrote, "The best nomination process is one with no factional lineup, rules that prevent unfair eliminations, an open door for capable newcomers, a structure in which incumbents also compete, and fairness," adding, "I believe the bold change that the people want is, surprisingly, quite simple. If the People Power Party lacks three things in this nomination process - the readiness to face criticism, the courage to recommend that some incumbents not run, and the resolve to endure internal backlash - it will end up walking the same path again."

He went on to say, "No one holds the nomination power. Neither the party leader, nor the city or provincial party chairs, nor the members of the National Assembly, nor the heads of local party chapters, nor the chair of the nomination committee - none of them should be thinking about installing their own people."

Regarding the nomination method, he continued, "We are also considering approaches such as primary elections in the form of public auditions, presentations (PT), policy announcements, and evaluations by citizen and expert juries," and predicted, "Instead of imposing a uniform nationwide standard, we will proceed with 'tailored nominations' that vary by region, such as whether a candidate is an incumbent or not, whether the area is advantageous or disadvantageous for us, and whether it is urban or non-urban."

He also pointed out, "The People Power Party has collapsed badly three times, during the IMF crisis and through two impeachments. We lost elections consecutively and changed party leaders, emergency committee chairs, and innovation committee chairs countless times. Yet the outcome was the same," adding, "In terms of nominations, it was not a nomination process designed to win, but one designed for our own side to survive."

In particular, he stressed, "Incumbents do not get an automatic pass. If their approval ratings, job performance evaluations, and the trust of residents fall below the standard, they must be replaced with courage," and added, "We are already seeing signs of turning the party into a private fiefdom by trying to give nominations based on personal ties to close aides who have struggled for the party, but this must be restrained. And if young people and experts are placed there just as photo-op decorations, that is the end."