The leadership of the People Power Party has expressed conflicting evaluations of the results from the June 3 local elections, revealing internal divisions. Amid discussions about the accountability of leader Jang Dong-hyuk for the electoral defeat, differing opinions emerged among the Supreme Council members.
According to Yonhap News on June 6, during an emergency Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly, Shin Dong-wook, a member of the ruling faction, stated, "The public has issued a stern mandate to both the ruling and opposition parties." He emphasized that compared to the local elections following the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye in 2018, the party could be seen as having performed significantly well in this election.
He further criticized factions opposing Jang Dong-hyuk, saying, "I clearly oppose linking this issue to party leadership and distorting the public's judgment with various political interpretations."
In contrast, Woo Jae-jun, a member of the pro-Han Dong-hoon faction, acknowledged, "The June 3 local elections are over. We take the public sentiment seriously," adding, "I apologize as a member of the leadership for not being able to provide significant support to our candidates." After the meeting, he told reporters, "What more is there to say? It is correct to say we did not help."
Jang did not provide a separate statement regarding the election results during the Supreme Council meeting.
Chief Spokesperson Park Seong-hoon told reporters before the meeting that Jang is listening to the voices of many lawmakers amid calls for him to take responsibility for the election defeat and step down. He noted that Jang had previously stated that his political life depended on winning the mayoral elections in Seoul and Busan.
When asked if the overall local election results should be viewed as a defeat following the loss in the Busan mayoral race, he simply replied, "We will humbly accept the voices of the public revealed through the election."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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