The ruling People Power Party on Friday elected police officer-turned-lawmaker Rep. Yun Jae-ok as its new floor leader.
Yun won the majority of votes from fellow lawmakers of the party, with 65 out of the 109 present, in a two-horse race against his competitor, the four-time lawmaker Rep. Kim Hack-yong.
In 2012, Yun became the first graduate of the Korean National Police University to win a National Assembly seat. He has since managed to be re-elected in the next two general elections to serve for three consecutive terms in the traditionally conservative city of Daegu.
As a police officer, he held key positions such as the chief of the National Police Agency’s information bureau and the commissioner of the Gyeonggi and North Gyeongsang provincial police departments.
Speaking to reporters, he said that he would “strive to restore South Korean people’s trust in politics and work with the opposition parties.”
During the last presidential race, Yun worked as a director in Yoon Suk Yeol’s election camp.
Yun, as a floor leader, will be working with the party’s chairperson Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon, who is deemed a Yoon ally.
Yun succeeds Rep. Joo Ho-young, a five-time lawmaker, also of Daegu, who is considered a moderate in the party.
