(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporters Ryu Mina, Seon-woong Seon-woong, and Yullip Lee = The People Power Party's Special Committee on Organizational Strengthening (Special Committee on Strengthening the Organization) will begin the review process in earnest to select the organizing committee chairs for the 36 vacant party member councils.
The Jogang Special Committee began announcing the selection of the organizing committee chairperson on the 2nd and accepted applications online for three days starting on the 7th.
This contest is intended to fill the vacant position of chairman of the organizing committee of the Accidental Party Association, and as the 'direct party member system' introduced under the leadership of Jang Dong-hyuk will be applied for the first time, there is considerable interest both inside and outside the party.
The contest was held in 5 locations in Seoul (Gwangjin-gap, Dongdaemun-gap, Jungnang-eul, Seongbuk-eul, Gwanak-gap), 2 in Incheon, 10 in Gyeonggi, 1 in Gangwon, 1 in Daejeon, 1 in North Chungcheong, 1 in South Chungcheong, 5 in Jeonbuk, 7 in Gwangju, South Jeolla, 2 in Gyeongnam, and 1 in Jeju.
In Gangneung, Gangwon-do, which attracted attention due to the fiercest competition behind the scenes, it is understood that six people applied, including former Gangwon-do Deputy Governor for Economic Affairs Kim Gwang-rae, former Gwangju Prosecutor's Office Chief Oh Se-in, and former Gyeonggi Anyang Manan Party Council Chairman Choi Don-ik.
Gangneung, where former lawmaker Kwon Seong-dong served five terms, is a place where by-elections are confirmed to be held in April next year, so it is interpreted that competition is heating up for the position of chairman of the party council, which can give him a significant advantage in nominations for by-elections.
Another constituency of interest is Yongin-gap, Gyeonggi Province, where former Presidential Office Discipline Secretary Lee Won-mo retired, and it has been confirmed that Supreme Council member Yang Hyang-ja, a former Samsung Electronics executive, and former Bareunmirae Party member Lee Dong-seop, who served as the head of the Kukkiwon, have applied.
Among the leadership figures of Representative Jang Dong-hyuk, Supreme Council Member Yang is the only one to participate in this contest. Contrary to the predictions of some that the so-called 'party faction outside the National Assembly' will actively take action, there appears to be no significant movement yet.
It is known that former National Police Agency Commissioner Yoon Hee-geun submitted his candidacy ticket at Cheongju Seowon in North Chungcheong Province.
It is reported that in most constituencies, local political figures, including former and current heads of local organizations and city and provincial council members, are the majority.
It was finally confirmed that proportional representation members did not apply for this contest.
This poor response from proportional representatives seems to be influenced by the fact that there is still a year and eight months left until the next general election and that there are not many 'attractive options' due to the fact that only the accident and party cooperatives are gathered.
In addition, the internal interpretation is that there is a considerable burden due to the first application of the direct election system for party members.
A party official said, "Since many of the contests in this contest were initially classified as 'rough terrain,' there is a tendency among proportional representatives to believe that 'it is not the time yet.'"
In addition, there appear to be some proportional representatives who believe that additional constituencies with relatively stable votes can be opened through the party audit scheduled for the end of the year.
In fact, this contest was conducted excluding four places, including three places where the chairman of the party council, who is an active member, is suspended from his party membership (Busan Saha-eul, Daegu Dalseobyeong, and Ulsan Ulju) and one place where the party council chairman, who is an active member, is suspended from office (Masan Member, Gyeongnam).
In addition, Hanam Gap, Gyeonggi Province, where lawmaker Yong Jeon resigned on the 5th, was also not included in this contest.
One proportional representative member said in a phone call, โIsnโt there a reason why the Accident Party Association is in an โaccidentโ state?โ and โThis time, I plan to focus on the regular National Assembly, including the National Assembly audit, and try to challenge it at the end of the year.โ
The Chosang Special Committee plans to inspect the status of the public offering on its own and proceed with subsequent procedures such as documents and interviews. If there are multiple applicants, the plan is to select candidates through a direct election among party members.
