Cho Kuk’s appearance on the general election scene

Cho Kuk, the leader of the Rebuilding Korea Party and previously involved in an academic fraud known as the ‘Cho Kuk scandal’ in 2019, called out to citizens saying, “Are you guys scared?” Cho’s key pledges are the impeachment and reduction of President Yoon Suk Yeol's term and limiting the power of the prosecution office. With completely opposite views, the opposition and ruling parties are predicting a second heads-on collision in Yeouido following the first battle in Seocho-dong. Cho’s remarks are like those of Choi Min-sik in the movie Rules of Time, before he brought in Ha Jung-woo and started a bigger fight.

The investigation of Cho Kuk's family in 2019, the suspension of investigations on former Financial Supervisory Commission officer Yoo Jae-soo, and Blue House’s alleged involvement in the Ulsan mayor election was like an opening strike by Yoo Suk Yeol, who was the prosecutor general at that time. It drove a strong rift in the power landscape. The life of Cho, the pro-Moon persona whom former President Moon Jae-in referred to as “debt of the heart,” fell into chaos. Some see this as a ‘soft coup’ by the Prosecutor General, while others dismiss this view as a “delusion.”

The battle that seemed to end with a guilty verdict in the second trial entered a new phase when Cho found the party while saying, “Three years is too long.” This variable was not considered in the current ruling party’s plan for the general elections. The party’s support rate is significantly high, even for the main opposition party. Just as President Yoon received public support while being framed as a ‘persecutor’ during his time as prosecutor general, some view that antipathy toward President Yoon has an effect of displaying Cho as the underdog.

Ironically, the Special Prosecution Department was at its peak when Cho advocated prosecution reform as Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs. The government's plan to adjust investigative powers was announced back then and maintained the prosecution's special investigative powers. In the fall of 2019, the special department of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office had to minimize the font size to include all the names of the prosecutors on A4-sized paper. It was interpreted as a reward for the harsh investigation into deep-rooted corruption against the conservative camp. This is why Cho was criticized for taking advantage of prosecutors while advocating for reform, changing his attitude when it was his turn.

It would be difficult to minimize the significance of Cho’s verdict if he is found guilty on the grounds that he would serve two years in prison and restrictions on his right to be elected because the dispute is more of a power game rather than an individual matter. Several familiar supporting aides, such as former prosecutor Park Eun-jeong, who appeared during the disciplinary phase of Prosecutor General Yoon, as well as Lee Seong-yoon and Shin Seong-sik. The name of a well-known politician’s husband, a renowned expert on investigating pyramid business schemes, is also mentioned. People Power Party Emergency Response Committee Chairman Han Dong-hoon proposed the ‘judgment of Lee-Cho (Lee Jae-myung and Cho Kuk)’ as a political strategy for winning. The situation is different, however, in that President Yoon and Chairman Han do not have investigative authority, and Cho lacks human power. We don’t even know when the judiciary will issue a ruling.