Nam Hyun-woo has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2013, mostly covering business and politics. He currently belongs to the Business Desk where he covers topics such as emerging tech, AI, ICT and Korea's chaebol community. Prior to joining the team, he was the paper's correspondent for the presidential office of Korea during the Yoon Suk Yeol and Moon Jae-in administrations.
ELECTION Disgraced ex-Minister Cho Kuk returns as political phenom
Rebuilding Korea Party Chairman Cho Kuk gives a statement at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, Wednesday, after exit polls showed that his party was anticipated to secure 12 to 14 seats in the general elections. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk
By Nam Hyun-woo
Rebuilding Korea Party likely to stand as No. 3 party
Disgraced former Justice Minister Cho Kuk, leader of the liberal minor opposition Rebuilding Korea Party (RKP), is rising as a political phenom, as the exit polls of Wednesday's general elections showed that his party will claim a significant portion of proportional representation seats in the next National Assembly.
His rise is expected to pose a new threat to the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, as the party has made it clear during the election campaign that its goal is to punish the "autocratic" administration which it claims is controlled by former prosecutors including Yoon.
According to exit polls by three public broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS, the RKP is anticipated to secure 12 to 14 seats out of 46 reserved for proportional representation. The RKP did not field any constituency candidates.
If the final election results, which will be confirmed early Thursday morning, stand within the exit poll range, the RKP will be the third-largest political party in Korea, following the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and its satellite Democratic United Party with 178 to 197 seats, and the ruling People Power Party (PPP) and its satellite People Future Party with 85 to 105 seats.
After the exit polls were revealed, Cho said, “The people have clearly shown their hopes for a verdict on the Yoon administration ... Yoon should humbly accept the outcome, and apologize to the public for his wrongdoings and corruption.”
The minor liberal party was created just a month before the elections and quickly rose above a slew of newly created parties, scoring double-digit support ratings in multiple surveys. It was buoyed by Cho’s personal political background and the party’s aggressive catchphrase: “three years are too long,” referring to Yoon’s remaining presidential term.
Then-senior presidential secretary for civil affairs Cho Kuk, fourth from right facing forward, gestures during a credential ceremony for then-Prosecutor General Yoon Suk Yeol, fifth from right, at Cheong Wa Dae in this July 25, 2019, photo. Joint Press Corps
Cho, who was the senior presidential secretary for civil affairs and justice minister during the previous Moon Jae-in administration, is widely described as one of the major antagonists in Yoon’s saga to the presidency.
He has been standing trial for years over allegations that he and his wife fabricated academic documents to get their daughter admitted to a medical school. Yoon, who was prosecutor-general at the time, butted heads with Moon in 2020 by insisting on investigating Cho. This propelled Yoon to become a political star among conservatives and eventually be elected president.
While Yoon clinched the power, the investigation continued and courts found Cho, his wife and daughter guilty. Cho lost his job as a professor at Seoul National University, his wife went to prison and the daughter lost her medical license.
“Under the Yoon administration, Cho’s family literally has lost everything, and this background styled him as a political champion who lost everything and is standing against the administration,” said Lee Jae-mook, a politics professor at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.
“An interesting point is that many RKP supporters are sympathizing with Cho’s predicament, saying they feel guilty about what happened to him. And this tendency is noticeable among those in liberal strongholds who have experiences of suffering suppression by conservative governments.”
With Cho highlighting his party’s clear goal of ending the Yoon administration early, the public sentiment against the president apparently helped the RKP enjoy its rise.
“Cho’s message of 'three years are too long' implies a negative idea, yet it resonated powerfully with the people, because it was more positive than blatantly saying we need to oust the president right now,” said Cho Jin-man, a politics professor at Duksung Women’s University.
Rebuilding Korea Party (RKP) Chairman Cho Kuk greets party officials in the RKP's monitoring room at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, Wednesday, after exit polls showed that the party was anticipated to secure 12 to 14 seats in the general elections. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul
Political positioning
The focus now is on how the party will position itself in the upcoming political landscape.
Despite sharing common criticisms of the Yoon government, the RKP stands apart from the DPK in terms of members.
During the candidate nominations for the elections, the DPK suffered serious factional infighting and established its mainstream with loyalists to Chairman Lee Jae-myung, marginalizing many party seniors of other factions.
The RKP is leaning toward supporters of the former president. The RKP’s top candidate, Park Eun-jeong, had been a prosecutor during the Moon administration and served as an auditor of then-Prosecutor General Yoon. Candidate No. 2 Cho was Moon’s closest aide, and candidate No. 6 Kim Joon-hyung had been chancellor of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy during the Moon government.
“The RKP’s rise can be interpreted as a reaction to the DPK’s factional infighting during the candidate nominations,” said Ha Shang-eung, a politics professor at Sogang University.
Political commentator Rhee Jong-hoon also said many liberal voters opted to support Cho during the DPK’s infighting, consolidating his position within the liberal bloc.
The RKP and the DPK are anticipated to maintain their cooperation to contain the Yoon government, though the possibility of a merger or close coalition remains elusive.
On the campaign trail, Tuesday, Cho said, “There will be no merger with the DPK” and added, “Our policies are more progressive and reformative than the DPK's, and a merger will water down those goals.”
Lee at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies also said a merger between the DPK and the RKP is unlikely, given the exit poll results.
“The DPK alone can secure more than 180 seats in the Assembly, and it will be able to dismiss the ruling party’s opposition during the legislative process,” Lee said. “Why would the DPK need the RKP? A hasty merger will end up bringing unnecessary rivalry between the DPK chairman and Cho over the next presidency.”