Conservative heavyweight Na Kyung-won launches presidential bid, slams 'Lee Jae-myung tyranny'

Five-time People Power Party Rep. Na Kyung-won officially entered the presidential race on Friday, joining a crowded field of conservative hopefuls ahead of the June 3 snap election.

"I stand here today with a heavy heart, as our country's fate hangs in the balance. We just had the tragedy of having a second president being impeached," Na said during a press conference, referencing the Constitutional Court’s unanimous decision on April 4 to remove former President Yoon Suk Yeol from office.

Calling the upcoming election a fight against the Democratic Party of Korea’s alleged “power grab,” she criticized the Democratic Party, which holds a majority in the National Assembly, for unilaterally passing 30 impeachment resolutions and 23 special counsel bills targeting key officials from the Yoon administration over the past three years.

Na said the Democratic Party's "reckless wielding of its Assembly majority" amounted to "legislative tyranny."

"The Democratic Party has abused the Assembly's impeachment powers. Impeachment should be an extraordinary, last resort measure," she said.

"Look what the Democratic Party has done with its majority in the Assembly. Imagine what they might be capable of doing when they take control of the executive."

Positioning herself as the only conservative candidate capable of defeating Democratic frontrunner Lee Jae-myung, Na described him as “dangerous” and a threat to the country’s future.

She also claimed that a Democratic administration could jeopardize South Korea’s alliance with the United States.

On April 2, Na met with Fred Fleitz, vice chair of the America First Policy Institute’s Center for American Security, during his visit to Seoul. In a phone interview with The Korea Herald, she said it was an "opportunity to get a sense of the Trump administration's policy attitudes toward the Korean Peninsula."

Na said Fleitz told her that Trump's America First agenda was "not about alienating allies or promoting American isolationism."

"He made it clear that rather, America First was about adopting a more pragmatic approach to tackling common security threats, such as the rise of China and North Korean nuclear program," she said.

Na added that they also discussed the potential implications of a Democratic Party return to power, adding she would not disclose the full details for her future work to "strengthen Korea-US relations."

A former judge-turned-politician, Na has long been a prominent figure in South Korean politics. In 2018, she became the first woman to serve as floor leader of the main conservative party.