GNP Lawmakers Compete for Party Leadership

With the election for the Grand National Party’s floor leader position just a week away, the competition between potential candidates for the posts of party chairman and National Assembly speaker is ever-intensifying.

At first, the presidential office and mainstream GNP lawmakers seemed to be thinking of supporting Kim Hyong-o to be the speaker, Park Hee-tae to be the party chairman, Hong Joon-pyo to be the floor leader and Yim Tae-hee to be the policy committee head. However, as some in the ruling party offered alternatives, the big picture could change.

At least the winner for the speaker position is almost certain to be Kim Hyong-o, a five-term lawmaker. Kim reportedly had a one-on-one meeting with President Lee Myung-bak early this month and expressed his will to take the speaker’s duties.

However, four-term lawmaker Ahn Sang-soo also announced his will to run for the speaker post and is doing his best to garner support from the 18th lawmakers-elect.

For the vice speaker position, four-term lawmakers Lee Yoon-sung and Kim Young-sun said they would run for it.

The party chairman post is highly likely to be occupied by either Chung Mong-joon or Park Hee-tae. After announcing his candidacy early, Chung is now conducting a tour to provincial areas to contact the party’s representatives directly. He is also attending a variety of parties to appeal for support. Mindful of the fact that he has not been with the party for a long time, he tends to be humble, even saying, “I’m a relatively new member. Please teach me many things.”

Park Hee-tae is actively engaged in a “radio campaign,” in which he appears on a radio show every day and discusses key issues within the party. He has his own merits and demerits: While he is unlikely to exercise strong leadership as a non-parliamentary member who failed to win the party’s recommendation for the 18th National Assembly, he has a very well-rounded personality.

Chung and Park are recently rushing to win the support from pro-Park Geun-hye lawmakers. That is because, as Park will not run for the election anyhow, winning support from the highly united pro-Park lawmakers would give them a considerable boost. Chung recently said, “Former Chairwoman Park should also run,” and, “The party should talk with Park,” while Park Hee-tae is also making positive remarks about the potential return of pro-Park lawmakers to the party.

However, there is also a move within some pro-president circles to support Kim Hyong-o or Ahn Sang-soo as the party’s chair. They believe that 61-year-old Kim will be perfect for the job because he is relatively younger than 70-year-old Park Hee-tae and more experienced than Chung Mong-joon. Ahn is recommended because he has support from the party’s mainstream members and closely communicates with Lee Jae-oh, one of the president’s closest associates.

The Hong Joon-pyo-Lim Tae-hee card is also competitive in the bid for the floor leader and policy committee head positions, which will be elected on May 22. Rep. Chung Ui-hwa also announced his candidacy, saying that, as a lawmaker from the Gyeongsang provinces, it is only natural for him to serve as the floor leader if the party leadership gets dominated by lawmakers from Seoul and the surrounding metropolitan area. He also considers Lim as his running mate.

Some mainstream lawmakers are reportedly searching for alternatives to Hong Joon-pyo, saying that, with his strong personality, Hong in the floor leader position responsible for introducing bills to the National Assembly could make things out of control. Regarding such concerns, Hong recently said, “I know politics. Autonomy of political party is important, but a party must not make politicians angry.”

jkmas@donga.com