Opposition Party Launches Jang Dong-hyuk Campaign Committee, Says It Will Block Dismissal of Indictments

[Financial News] The People Power Party has officially entered full election mode by launching its central campaign committee for the June 3 local elections. Although calls for Jang Dong-hyuk to step back from the front line have emerged, especially from candidates in the Seoul metropolitan area, he decided to take the role of standing chair himself. The committee was named the "People's Campaign Committee to Judge National Disregard and Block the Dismissal of Indictments," and the party plans to continue its offensive against the Democratic Party of Korea's so-called "special counsel on dismissal of indictments" or "special counsel on fabricated prosecutions."
The People Power Party held the launch ceremony for its central campaign committee on the 13th at its headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul. Jang will lead the committee as standing chair, while floor leader Song Eon-seok, policy committee chair Jeong Jeong-sik, and supreme council members Shin Dong-wook, Kim Min-soo, Kim Jae-won and Cho Kwang-han will serve as co-chairs. Woo Jae-joon, the party's youth supreme council member, indicated that he would not take part.
The committee plans to make the ruling bloc's attempts to dismiss indictments a major issue in the June 3 local elections. It will also set up a "Committee to Block the Special Prosecutor Act on Dismissal of Indictments" under the campaign committee. Lawmaker Joo Jin-woo, a former prosecutor, will lead the effort to block the special prosecutor bill on fabricated prosecutions.
The list of standing co-chairs also reflects the party's intention to focus on real estate and youth policy in an effort to win in the fiercely contested Seoul metropolitan area. The People Power Party appointed Konkuk University real estate professor Shim Kyo-yeon, Yonsei University economics professor Yang Jun-mo, Konkuk University professor Lee Yoon-jin of the Institute for Healthy Aging Society Research, and chairperson Choi Ji-ye as standing co-chairs. Jeong Hee-yong, the party's secretary general, will serve as campaign headquarters chief and oversee election operations.
Jang Dong-hyuk, who serves as standing chair of the campaign committee, said, "Lee Jae-myung is trying to erase his crimes through the special counsel on dismissal of indictments, and the moment those crimes are erased, the separation of powers and the rule of law in South Korea will come to an end." He added, "The government will start by taking money from Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, and then it will plunder the property of hardworking citizens."
He then called for unity within the party. "Our conflict and division are exactly what Lee Jae-myung and the Democratic Party of Korea want," he said. "This is the time to come together."
Tensions also surfaced as Woo, a supreme council member, refused to join the campaign committee. A press release had listed him as a co-chair as part of the leadership, but he objected to being appointed without prior notice or consent. Speaking to reporters at the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea that day, he said, "I do not think it is acceptable to appoint someone without asking for their consent first." He added, "I do not plan to attend the launch ceremony."
Meanwhile, the committee also handed out nomination certificates to candidates in by-elections for the National Assembly that will be held alongside the local elections. The candidates in the by-elections are Park Min-sik for Busan Buk-gu-gap, Lee Jin-sook for Daegu Dalseong, Park Jong-jin for Incheon Yeonsu A, Shim Wang-seop for Incheon Gyeyang-eul, Ahn Tae-wook for Gwangju Gwangsan-eul, Kim Tae-gyu for Ulsan Nam-gu Gap, Yu Eui-dong for Pyeongtaek-eul in Gyeonggi, Kim Seok-hoon for Ansan Gap in Gyeonggi, Lee Yong for Hanam-gap in Gyeonggi, Kim Min-kyung for Asan Eul in South Chungcheong, Yoon Yong-geun for Gongju-Buyeo-Cheongyang in South Chungcheong, Oh Ji-seong for Gunsan-Gimje-Buan A in North Jeolla, and Go Gi-cheol for Seogwipo in Jeju.
Park Min-sik said, "Do not worry about Buk-gu-gap. We will definitely win," adding, "With a do-or-die spirit, I will retake Buk-gu-gap, the northern defense line of the Nakdong River front."
Lee Jin-sook said, "In this election, voters must choose between liberal democracy, left-wing populism, and people's democracy." She added, "In Lee Jae-myung's Korea, the president is acting as if he were a king and declaring, 'I am the state,' while trying to clear all five charges against him. There is no king in South Korea in 2026. I will definitely defend liberal democracy."
haeram@fnnews.com Lee Hae-ram Reporter