President Park Geun-hye could become a premature lame duck, analysts said Tuesday, as a scandal revolving around some of her current and former top aides continued to brew.

The president has been under fire concerning accusations that Chung Yoon-hoi, her former chief of staff, had illicitly interfered in top government personnel decisions. Chung even tried to get presidential Chief of Staff Kim Ki-choon fired by circulating bad rumors, leaked presidential office papers allege.

Although Park and members of the governing Saenuri Party have tried to downplay the public outcry sparked by the scandal, dubbed the “Chung Yoon-hoi gate,” it could render the president powerless, possibly sometime late next year, analysts said.

“Potential presidential candidates are beginning to distance themselves from a possibly unpopular incumbent,” said Choi Young-jin, professor of Korean politics at Chung-Ang University, in reference to Saenuri Party chair Rep. Kim Moo-sung.

Kim, a likely conservative candidate for the 2017 presidential race, has largely backed Park, even on the unpopular proposal to reform civil servant pensions. But he has made seemingly contradictory statements on the influence-peddling scandal.

Kim had said that “the president and the Saenuri Party are one,” during a luncheon with Park last Sunday.

But the next day, he said, “If prosecutors find any wrongdoing in their investigations (on the Chung rumors), our party will request the president to address the scandal.”

Choi says that Kim is following “the Korean political cycle,” in which presidents who steadily fall out of favor are marginalized as lawmakers and presidential hopefuls begin to shun the incumbent, mindful of their own popularity.

The contrary statements also come as lawmakers seek to avoid falling out of favor with a president who still could influence the nominations for the 2016 general election, said Yoon Pyung-joong, professor at Hanshin University.

“But (Kim’s comments) show that Saenuri lawmakers are somewhat ambivalent about the recent Chung scandal,” Yoon added.

Park’s approval ratings have fallen slightly since the scandals surfaced late last month according to Gallup Korea, from 44 to 42 percent, while the disapproval ratings have increased from 45 to 48 percent.

Her prospects appear dimmer according to a local report and comments from another Korean politics expert.

“The president lacks a power base who can stick by her in times of political trouble,” Yun Seong-yi, professor of Korean politics at Kyung Hee University said in an interview last week.

An editorial in the conservative newspaper the Chosun Ilbo on Tuesday supported Yun’s comments.

“There is still a large chance that the rumors about Chung will turn out to be false. The major problem though is that there was a leak of classified presidential papers, and that the leak was caused by a power struggle among Cheong Wa Dae officials,” the editorial said.

“The president must show signs that she will prevent a similar incident in the future. But there is no one around her that will offer that kind of candid, genuine and necessary political advice.”

By Jeong Hunny (hj257@heraldcorp.com)