DUP seeks matching adversaries to ruling party leader


As the immediate aftermath of the general elections abates, presidential potentials are gearing up for the bigger race at the end of the year.

In the ruling Saenuri Party, candidates are seeking to take attention away from Rep. Park Geun-hye and to win its presidential nomination race slated for August.

The main opposition Democratic United Party is looking for competitive adversaries to Rep. Park, including non-party options such as professor Ahn Cheol-soo.

The right-wing party’s interim leader Park has taken an unrivaled lead in most public polls, especially since she showed her political clout through the parliamentary election.

Park will step down from her provisional chairmanship next month when the party is to elect new leadership through a national convention.

Standing as her in-party rival is Rep. Chung Mong-joon, a leading supporter of President Lee Myung-bak, who is expected to form an alliance with the party’s non-Park figures. The former businessman is also one of the party’s top-ranking members, having won his seventh seat in the National Assembly.

Though Chung is yet to catch up with Park’s reputation, the Seoul lawmaker claims to have an upper hand in the country’s capital.

Gyeonggi Gov. Kim Moon-soo also said that he will soon announce his official stance.

“I am seriously considering taking part in the party’s internal race presidential candidacy,” he said in a recent broadcasted interview.

He claimed that the Park Geun-hye dominancy has its flaws, pointing out to the fact that the party, despite its general victory in the parliamentary race, was utterly defeated in Seoul.

Also, voices were raised form within the party that Park’s exclusive dominance may be too risky, as in the case of Lee Hoi-chang back in the 2002 presidential race.

“The party lost in the 2002 election as there were no alternatives to Rep. Lee, who was considered the top potential,” said pro-Park Rep. Yoo Ki-june, calling for a wider spectrum of candidates.

Former Special Affairs Minister Lee Jae-oh and former Prime Minister Chung Un-chan have not yet confirmed their plan but are also counted as valid options.

The liberal camp, too, set out for the December election, while leaving the disappointing parliamentary results behind.

The DUP senior advisor and top hopeful Moon Jae-in is expected to soon confirm his candidacy.

“The time has come for me to make a final decision,” he said in a radio interview Wednesday.

Moon is also rumored to be holding close contact with Ahn Cheol-soo, who recently confirmed his presidential plan but yet refrained from joining the DUP for the purpose.

Some eyed Kim Doo-kwan, South Gyeongsang governor and a close aide to former liberal President Roh Moo-hyun, especially as Moon failed to lead the party’s victory in most parts of Yeongnam.

Former Democratic Party powers such Sohn Hak-kyu, Chung Sye-kyun and Chung Dong-young have so far remained low but are reportedly expanding their range and will register themselves as preliminary candidates next month.

Observers also noted that rookies may rise as a valid option, in case incumbent figures fail to prove their influence. They thus cited the example of former President Roh, who was a political nobody when he first challenged for the party’s candidacy back in 2002.

By Bae Hyun-jung (tellme@heraldcorp.com)