Rep. Kim Sang-wook, a maverick conservative lawmaker who recently broke away from the People Power Party, publicly declared his support on Thursday for Rep. Lee Jae-myung, the liberal Democratic Party of Korea’s presidential candidate.
At a press conference at the National Assembly, Kim, now an independent lawmaker, said he “openly endorses” Lee as the most suitable candidate to be the next president, citing his willingness and ability to “propose an agenda for national unity and manage state affairs while bridging the partisan divide.”
Kim described the liberal presidential front-runner as a candidate who safeguards conservative principles, in line with Lee's intention to embrace centrist voters.
"Lee has experience of achieving stability while leading an administration and championing innovation through policies while serving as Seongnam mayor and Gyeonggi Province governor," Kim told reporters. "He also overcame an internal party strife through his leadership and handled the aftermath of the Dec. 3 insurrection in an orderly manner."
However, Kim did not immediately express his intention to join the Democratic Party of Korea.
In response to Kim’s endorsement, Lee told reporters Thursday at a rally in Hadong-gun, South Gyeongsang Province, he “hopes Kim will join our party,” expressing gratitude.
Lee added that “reasonable conservatives will eventually have to walk away” from the People Power Party if it proves “unable to reform itself into a genuinely reasonable conservative force.”
Rep. Kim Min-seok, a senior staff member at the Democratic Party's campaign headquarters, said Thursday that the liberal party would embrace center-right voters and politicians, hinting at a "surprise announcement" of more conservative figures joining Lee's camp.
Kim, a 45-year-old freshman lawmaker representing a constituency in the southeastern region's Ulsan, had been considered a lone wolf in the conservative People Power Party before quitting the party in the aftermath of former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s martial law declaration on Dec. 3.
Back then, Kim was one of 18 People Power Party lawmakers to vote for the parliament's resolution to nullify Yoon's martial law in the wee hours of Dec. 4, along with 172 other lawmakers of the then-opposition parties, including the Democratic Party.
Later, Kim was one of a few conservative lawmakers to participate in voting sessions concerning the motion to impeach Yoon on Dec. 7 and Dec. 14. In the latter session, Kim openly voted in favor of Yoon's impeachment, although the votes were cast by secret ballot.
Kim parted ways with the People Power Party on May 8, denouncing his former party as becoming "far-right."
consnow@heraldcorp.com
