LKP primary draws little attention
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Four presidential hopefuls of the conservative Liberty Korea Party, from left ― South Gyeongsang Gov. Hong Joon-pyo, Rep. Kim Jin-tae, North Gyeongsang Gov. Kim Kwan-yong and former six-term lawmaker Rhee In-je ― pose ahead of a televised debate on SBS, Monday. / Yonhap
By Choi Ha-young
The primary race of the Liberty Korea Party (LKP) is drawing little public attention, largely due to the fallout from the removal from office of former President Park Geun-hye, analysts said Tuesday.
Park’s influence is palpable in the primary race with three of four contenders being loyal to the former leader. South Gyeongsang Province Governor Hong Joon-pyo is the only contender who is not tied to Park, but he is off kilter, too. He is now awaiting the Supreme Court’s ruling as a defendant in a bribery trial.
In sharp contrast to the active participation of voters in the primaries of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and the People’s Party, only 18.7 percent of eligible LKP voters cast their ballots, Sunday.
Hong is the frontrunner in the nationwide opinion poll with 9.5 percent of the vote. Rep. Kim Jin-tae, infamous for his verbal abuse of the bereaved families of the Sewol ferry victims, stands at 5 percent, primarily backed by pro-Park far-right supporters.
North Gyeongsang Governor Kim Kwan-yong and former six-term lawmaker Rhee In-je have not been tallied on the opinion polls. Rhee, 68, who declared his presidential bid for the fourth time from 15 different parties, is mocked online as a “phoenix” for his never-ending ambition.
Traces of the disgraced ex-President are haunting the National Assembly’s second-largest party with 93 lawmakers. At the televised debate Monday, the four hopefuls vied for loyalists of the scandal-hit former president.
Hong, the sole anti-Park figure, lashed out at the prosecution’s decision to request an arrest warrant for Park. “The prosecutors appear to have requested it to pave the way for Moon Jae-in from the DPK,” the prosecutor-turned-governor said.
Instead of meaningful competition over pledges, the four hopefuls exchanged barbs about whether North Korea is a state or not. Further, they made headlines over their strongly worded remarks.
“The proletariats have overthrown the government,” Hong said on Facebook, regarding the anti-Park protests, Tuesday.
Rep. Kim, a former prosecutor, is under fire for likening Park to a royal family member, saying, “Prosecutors are killing a tearful woman who was expelled from the palace.”
The party has two more debates ahead, before unveiling its final results Friday to nominate its candidate. The LKP will give an on-site poll and public a 50 percent weighting each.
Hong with higher public awareness than the others is the most likely to be nominated, considering that 23.8 percent of on-site voters were from South Gyeongsang Province where he was reelected as governor.