Seoul: South Korea’s ruling People Power Party has chosen former employment and labor minister Kim Moon-soo as its presidential candidate during a party convention held near Seoul. The decision comes ahead of the country’s presidential election scheduled for June 3, following the removal of former President Yoon Suk-yeol from office in April.
According to Ethiopian News Agency, Kim, who has previously served as a governor of Gyeonggi Province and a member of the National Assembly, is recognized as a hardline conservative within the party. He opposed Yoon’s impeachment, which was initiated due to Yoon’s declaration of martial law in December. In his acceptance speech, Kim launched a strong critique against the main opposition Democratic Party candidate, Lee Jae-myung.
Kim stated that South Korea’s liberal democracy would be at risk of disintegration and warned of a bleak future unless the Democratic Party of Korea’s alleged dictatorial rule is halted. He accused Lee of contaminating the National Assembly with deceit and criminal activities and expressed his belief that such a person should not assume the presidency. Despite these accusations, Lee Jae-myung has been leading in opinion polls regarding support ratings.
The political landscape was further complicated when former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo announced his candidacy as an independent the previous Friday. There have been calls within the ruling party for either Kim or Han to withdraw to consolidate support behind a single candidate to effectively challenge Lee. Kim has expressed his readiness to back a unified candidate, stating, “I will establish strong solidarity with any forces to prevent the DP Lee Jae-myung from taking office.”