hankyoreh

Leader of the ruling People Power Party Kim Gi-hyeon speaks at a meeting of the party’s Supreme Committee on Oct. 12, one day after the defeat of the party’s nominee in the race for chief of Gangseo District. (Yonhap)

After voters soundly rejected the ruling People Power Party in the by-election for the chief of Seoul’s Gangseo District, there has been an outpouring of calls for the party to carry out major internal reforms.

In the wake of the unanticipatedly crushing defeat in Gangseo, President Yoon Suk-yeol made an attempt to appease the public by having his nominee for minister of gender equality and family, Kim Haeng, drop out of the running. After being mired in controversy and even leaving in the middle of her confirmation hearing at one point, Kim Haeng has withdrawn herself from consideration.

Yet absent major shifts in Yoon’s policy line or improvements to the top-down relationship between the presidential office and the PPP, critics say it will be difficult to pull off any fundamental changes.

Following the party’s election rout the day prior, on Thursday, PPP leader Kim Gi-hyeon said his party “respects the outcome, is humbled by it, and will reflect on it.”

“We will soberly analyze the reasons for this loss and take special measures to come out on top in the general election,” the ruling party leader said. “We will prepare tailored alternatives to win over more voters in regions and the capital area, where our party is relatively weak.” He also pledged to continue serving as party leader next year.

On Wednesday, Kim Tae-woo, the PPP’s candidate for the mayor of Seoul’s Gangseo District, suffered an overwhelming defeat to Jin Gyo-hoon, the Democratic Party’s candidate, by a margin of 17.15 points.

“This election concerns only one of the basic levels of local government, but we will consider this outcome a reflection of how the public feels nationwide and do our best to fully take into account the message that was sent,” commented Yun Jae-ok, the party’s floor leader.

The party leadership is considering launching three bodies, including a general election planning team, a talent search committee, and a tentatively named “innovation committee” to prepare in advance for the general election.

“We will take the people’s reprimand seriously and launch bodies for reform as soon as possible, and review the party’s strategy and policy direction,” Kim Gi-hyeon said in a text message to lawmakers reviewed by the Hankyoreh. The party will hold a caucus of its lawmakers on Sunday to gather opinions.

The presidential office also appeared humbled by the outcome. Yoon sacked his nominee for minister of gender equality and family, Kim Haeng, by having her voluntarily withdraw from contention. The nominee had been embroiled in various controversies including stock parking and allegedly perjuring herself during her confirmation hearing, as well as coming under fire for walking out in the middle of her confirmation hearing.

“As a party member I must put my party first and foremost, and have thus decided to withdraw from consideration of my own volition,” Kim Haeng said in a statement released at 2 pm.

Prior to her announcement, the ruling party leadership reportedly communicated to the presidential office that she should step down. Before the results of the by-election, the presidential office was reportedly inclined to appoint Kim Haeng regardless of public opinion, but backed off after being sharply rebuked by the public.

Within the party, a sense of crisis and criticism has erupted over its first disastrous defeat since the Yoon administration took office. A sense of emergency that the same outcomes could repeat themselves in next year’s general election has spread to all corners of the party.

In particular, there’s been a considerable amount of dissatisfaction with Yoon and demands to revise the president’s management of state affairs — two matters that the ruling party has been reticent on up until now.

“Yoon needs to make a change before anything else can happen,” a prominent lawmaker told the Hankyoreh. “He needs to know that we’re in a crisis.”

Another lawmaker based in the greater Seoul area shared similar sentiments. “The party is not the only thing that needs to change. The current administration needs to be reworked entirely. There is nothing to be gained by only resorting to confrontations with the opposition. We need to present a vision for people’s lives and strengthen our position to persuade and communicate with the people,” they remarked.

During an interview on a KBS radio show, former lawmaker Yoo Seong-min said, “In a word, this defeat is all Yoon’s. It was the president himself who chose to pardon and reinstate a candidate three months after he had been sentenced by the Supreme Court and put him on the ballot.”

There have also been calls to do away with the top-down approach the presidential office takes with the PPP.

“When the presidential office makes a mistake that causes public opinion to sour and the direction of certain policies needs to be changed, the party leader should be able to go to the president and tell him what needs to happen, and the president should take that under advisement. But that’s not what’s happening now,” remarked a PPP lawmaker who represents a district in the greater Seoul area. “If we don’t change the way of thinking and the system we have in the party now, we’re going to see a whole cast of new faces in the upcoming 22nd National Assembly.”

However, fundamental change seems very unlikely, as the presidential office doesn’t seem to think there is a dire need for an overhaul. As one of Yoon’s aides put it, “It’s unreasonable to link the defeat to the presidential office. The presidential office will naturally change its stance [as the general election approaches], so it’s a bit much to force some sort of change.”

As for speculations of a possible reshuffle of advisors, the presidential office dismissed any correlation to the by-election rout and said any reshuffle would be in preparation for the upcoming general election.

The presidential office took particularly strong offense to the interpretation that the by-election’s outcome served as a judgment on the Yoon administration as a whole.

“Who came up with such a preposterous notion that what happened in Gangseo was a castigation of the administration?” balked Yoon’s aides. “This wasn’t a nationwide election, so it’s quite a stretch to place the blame on the presidential office when we lost at a level similar to the last general election.”

Echoing this sentiment, the presidential office issued only a pro forma statement on the day, saying, “The administration must take the outcomes of any and all elections seriously.”

The presidential office has also shied away from replacing the PPP leadership.

“We’re a set, Kim Gi-hyeon and us, so it won’t be easy to just drop him. As of now, the best plan is to switch to general election mode [under the current leadership],” said one presidential office official.

PPP lawmakers have also been quick to rule out the possibility of forming an emergency leadership committee to replace Kim. “You can’t be pro-Yoon if you want to score points with the people, and you have to be pro-Yoon if you want to communicate with the president, which makes for a near-impossible standard. There is no good alternative here,” commented a prominent lawmaker.

A key member of the party’s leadership also remarked, “If the leadership is expected to quit because of a district office chief election, you’re basically saying that the leadership should quit after every election.”

At the closed-door meeting, Supreme Committee members from Seoul and its surrounding area also suggested that all appointed positions, including the general secretary, should resign, but no decision was reached.

Experts say that without a shift in the attitude in Yongsan, the ruling party will struggle to pull off any drastic changes.

“The philosophy of governance and policy direction of the presidential office needs to be hugely reworked and supplemented,” said Lee Jun-han, a professor at Incheon National University. “The party is very weak and dependent on the presidential office, and this needs to change.”

By Seo Young-ji, staff reporter; Son Hyun-soo, staff reporter; Kang Jae-gu, staff reporter; Bae Ji-hyun, staff reporter

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