By Chung Min-uck
The ruling Saenuri Party is concerned about the possible defection of senior lawmakers to run in the April 11 general election as independent candidates.
The approval rating of the ruling party has dropped sharply, lagging behind the main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP) in some surveys.
The party’s emergency committee has called for senior lawmakers, especially those who represent electorates in the party’s home turf of Gyeongsang Province to give up their candidacy in the upcoming general election.
Experts say if they take a collective action to run as independents or join a minor conservative party, it will lead to a vote spilt and this will put the already troubled ruling party in a more challenging situation. The registration deadline to run on the Saenuri Party’s ticket is Friday.
In the latest opinion poll conducted by Realmeter, the DUP was ahead by 4 percentage points. The pollster said last week’s name change from Grand National Party to Saenuri, meaning “new world,” has not helped build support from the public.
Earlier, the emergency committee announced a plan to ban 25 percent of the party’s incumbent lawmakers from running in the upcoming parliamentary election on its ticket.
The candidate selection committee said it will require lawmakers to sign a non-binding letter not to run in the election as an independent candidate even if eliminated in the selection process. This was adopted to prevent a vote split. However, the effectiveness of the move is questionable as the agreement is toothless.
Following pressure from the leadership and the fast-dwindling popularity of the party, insiders are worried about a collective move by senior legislators seeking independent candidacies.
“There is a sign that some senior lawmakers are seriously considering declaring a bid to run in the election as independents, not seeking the party ticket. I think there will be a lot of those who announce independent candidacies after the candidate selection committee starts eliminating incumbents,” said an insider from the Saenuri Party on condition of anonymity, Monday.
The candidate selection committee is to make its picks next Monday.
Rep. Park Geun-hye, chairwoman of the emergency committee, is reportedly planning not to run in the general election in preparation for the presidential election in December.