People Power Party criticizes Lee but neglects its reform

People Power Party Emergency Committee Chairman Kim Yong-tae demanded during a June 22 luncheon with President Lee Jae-myung and party leaders that Lee promise to delay his trial until after his presidential term ends. The request puzzled many party members, even among those strongly opposed to Lee, who questioned whether raising Lee’s legal issues at a high-profile political event would benefit a campaign already seen as lost.

However, Kim’s remarks reflect the party’s continued inertia. Following its presidential election defeat, the People Power Party’s leadership effectively collapsed. While Kim remains emergency committee chairman, the resignation of many committee members and key officials has left the leadership largely paralyzed. The party’s public voice is now led by new Floor Leader Song Eon-seok and his team. Yet even three weeks after the election, internal meetings remain focused almost entirely on Lee.

At the first floor strategy meeting on June 17, Lee was mentioned 20 times. Party leaders denounced him with remarks such as “The Lee Hwa-young and Cho Kuk pardon theory is a secret deal to claim election victory” and “Lee-style economics will lead to failures like Argentina and Venezuela.” While criticism and oversight are core functions of any opposition party, the issue is that nearly all messaging centers on Lee, with little attention given to party reform or concrete policy proposals.

The second and third strategy meetings on June 20 and 24 showed the same pattern. In three meetings, Lee was named 59 times. The ruling Democratic Party mocked People Power for being obsessed with Lee, asking if all they know how to do is attack him.

Five years ago, the landscape was similar: the Democratic Party controlled both the presidency and the National Assembly, while conservatives held just over 100 seats. Yet after that electoral defeat, the new conservative leadership did not focus solely on then-President Moon Jae-in. At its first meeting in June 2020, the Kim Jong-in emergency committee did not mention Moon at all. Instead, it highlighted policy initiatives such as establishing a data agency and expanding social insurance for platform workers. Later meetings addressed low birth rates, reflected on the party’s election loss, and pledged internal reform. The floor leadership echoed the same priorities.

At the time, some conservatives questioned whether a minority party should concentrate on policy instead of mounting fierce opposition. Still, by consistently prioritizing reform and policy proposals, the party gradually regained public support. That approach laid the groundwork for its victories in by-elections and the 2022 presidential race.

Despite losing the latest election, People Power has spent the past three weeks fixated on President Lee rather than pursuing internal renewal. On June 26, the party was confronted with a sobering 20 percent approval rating in a national survey. It may now be time to acknowledge that the defeat was not due to a lack of attacks on Lee, but to a failure to focus on party reform.