Lee Jun-seok Criticizes Jang Dong-hyuk's Call for Nationwide Re-elections

Lee Jun-seok, leader of the Reform Party, criticized Jang Dong-hyuk, head of the People Power Party, for calling for nationwide re-elections in response to a shortage of ballots during the June 3 local elections. He questioned whether Jang was urging the resignation of Oh Se-hoon, the elected mayor of Seoul, labeling it as "bad politics."

Lee stated on Facebook on June 7, "Jang Dong-hyuk has brought up the idea of a 'full re-election including Seoul.' However, one thing must be made clear: the Seoul mayoral election was won by Oh Se-hoon of the People Power Party."

He noted that there are only two ways to invalidate a winning election: either the defeated candidate, Jeong Won-oh of the Democratic Party, files a lawsuit to annul the election, or Oh voluntarily resigns.

Lee remarked, "Jeong Won-oh has already acknowledged his defeat. Is Jang really asking the opposing party to overturn our party's victory through a lawsuit?"

He further explained that the only path the People Power Party can directly control is for Oh to voluntarily relinquish his position and resign, leading to a by-election in October.

Lee concluded, "This leads to one clear conclusion. Jang's call for a 're-election in Seoul' is essentially a demand for Oh to step down. Is Jang's demand for a re-election a call for Oh's resignation or not? It must be one of the two."

He criticized the notion of discussing technical issues while gathering support from the youth, stating, "Pressuring Oh to resign is bad politics. Aren't you a judge?"

Jang Dong-hyuk held a press conference at the National Assembly the same day, stating, "The citizens gathered at Olympic Park calling for re-elections, and those who cannot be there but are watching through videos, represent the majority of the public who want this flawed election corrected."

He added, "This is not just about one or two issues, and it is not a matter of excluding regions where our party has won. The time for the party to decide whether to pursue re-elections based on its own interests has already passed."