Reform Party to Shift to Emergency Leadership Committee System—Can It Recover from Near-Collapse?

[Financial News] The Reform Party will announce its emergency leadership committee chair as early as the 14th. The move is intended to fill the leadership vacuum created by the resignation of former leader Lee Jun-seok. The Reform Party plans to form an “innovation emergency committee” to rescue the party, which has fallen into a sense of powerlessness since the June 3 local elections. The new committee will also face the task of laying the groundwork to challenge the strongholds of the two major parties ahead of the 2028 general election.
According to political sources on the 11th, the Reform Party announced the results of a vote held on the 10th among its top-tier party members, or members who pay party dues. The vote asked members whether to amend the party constitution to establish an emergency leadership committee, as the current constitution contains no legal basis for doing so. Of the 27,762 eligible voters, 15,618 participated. The amendment passed with 14,213 votes, or 91%, in favor, while 1,405 voters, or 9%, opposed it.
Chun Ha-ram, the acting party leader and floor leader, said while announcing the results, "I have arranged to meet with the people being considered for the chairmanship later this week and over the weekend." He explained, "We have already discussed the matter to some extent, but we will make formal proposals and determine the specific term of office." Former lawmaker Jo Eungcheon is currently considered the leading candidate for the post within the party. Jo also ran as a candidate for governor of Gyeonggi Province in the June 3 local elections.
The Reform Party’s first emergency leadership committee will be tasked with resolving the party’s turmoil. If its term runs long, the committee is expected to serve until August next year, when Lee Jun-seok’s remaining term ends. With the 23rd general election only eight months away, it must complete preparations for the election. The newly appointed chair is also expected to lead discussions on alliances among conservative forces, including the People Power Party and independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon.
Attention is also focused on how the new chair will devise the party’s strategy for the general election. Former leader Lee Jun-seok had envisioned concentrating candidates in the “southern Gyeonggi belt,” but disagreements reportedly emerged within the party.
The central task is to raise the party’s profile. In the June 3 local elections, the party produced only one district council member. It failed to make a dent in the two-party structure dominated by the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and the People Power Party. In the Seoul mayoral election, it suffered a crushing defeat, ranking fifth in vote share among five candidates. The alleged staged terrorism incident involving Jeong I-han, the Reform Party’s candidate for mayor of Busan, became known to the public and also damaged trust in the party.
As the Reform Party presents itself as a centrist-conservative party, calls are growing for it to build self-sustaining strength by differentiating itself from the DPK and the People Power Party. The DPK is seeking to broaden its appeal by calling for a “shift of the zero point,” while the People Power Party is raising its profile through opposition to the government during the confirmation-hearing process. Some analysts therefore say the Reform Party’s room for political activity has narrowed. To increase its profile, it must either establish itself as an alternative party capable of attracting voters who strongly reject both major parties or demonstrate a stronger campaign against the government than the People Power Party. However, its status as a minor party with only three lawmakers imposes clear practical limitations.
Attention is also focused on whether the party can change its image as the “Lee Jun-seok party.” Lee Jun-seok has run the Reform Party on the strength of his high public recognition. Whether the new emergency leadership committee chair will maintain or change that approach remains a key point to watch.

[email protected] Lee Hae-ram Reporter