Rival parties' presidential primaries struggle to spark interest

Presidential hopefuls from the liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) pose during a ceremony pledging to hold a fair primary at the National Assembly in Seoul, Wednesday. From left are former DPK chairman Lee Jae-myung, former South Gyeongsang Province Gov. Kim Kyoung-soo and Gyeonggi Province Gov. Kim Dong-yeon. Yonhap

Major political parties kicked off their primaries to select candidates for the upcoming June 3 presidential election on Wednesday, but the race is drawing little attention from the public due to a lack of surprise factors.

The registration period closed the previous day, with three contenders from the liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and eight from the conservative People Power Party (PPP) accepted in the initial stage. Only one candidate from each party will ultimately secure their party’s ticket to the presidential race.

The three figures competing in the DPK race are former party leader Lee Jae-myung, Gyeonggi Province Gov. Kim Dong-yeon and former South Gyeongsang Province Gov. Kim Kyoung-soo. The party will nominate its candidate on April 27.

Opinion polls show that Lee is the dominant frontrunner, enjoying strong backing from the party’s pro-Lee faction. Lee, who had narrowly lost to now-impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol in the 2022 presidential election, has been the leading political figure in the opposition bloc.

A Realmeter poll released last week showed Lee leading all potential presidential hopefuls across political parties with 48.8 percent support.

His dominance is even higher among DPK supporters, with 87.9 percent saying they would vote for him, while the other two candidates each received support from only one percent of DPK supporters.

The surveys show that Lee is expected to secure the party’s nomination with little or no competition, leading many voters to view DPK's primary as a formality.

This combined photo shows presidential hopefuls of the conservative People Power Party (PPP). Clockwise from top left are former Labor Minister Kim Moon-soo, Rep. Na Kyung-won, Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, former lawmaker Yang Hyang-ja, former Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo, former PPP leader Han Dong-hoon, North Gyeongsang Province Gov. Lee Cheol-woo and Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok. Courtesy of PPP

The PPP’s primary also lacks suspense.

A total of eight individuals are set to run, including former Labor Minister Kim Moon-soo, PPP lawmakers Na Kyung-won and Ahn Cheol-soo, former party leader Han Dong-hoon, former Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo, North Gyeongsang Province Gov. Lee Cheol-woo, Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok and former lawmaker Yang Hyang-ja.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and former lawmaker Yoo Seong-min — both seen as moderate conservatives with the potential to attract centrist voters — opted not to enter the race just days before the primary began.

The PPP primary will be split into three parts. It will select the top four on April 22, the top two on April 29 and nominate a candidate on May 3.

In the Realmeter poll, among the PPP contenders, only Kim Moon-soo garnered over 10 percent support, while the rest remained in single digits.

The party’s struggle to overcome the political fallout from Yoon’s impeachment and its candidates’ sluggish approval ratings pose a challenge in drawing public interest in its primary.

Rather than introducing effective policy agendas, PPP hopefuls appear to be rallying around the mantra “blocking Lee Jae-myung.”

Some contenders, including Kim Moon-soo and Hong, have floated the idea of forming a so-called “big tent” coalition to fight Lee, but the prospect appears slim due to their diverging stances on key issues, including Yoon’s impeachment.

“Conservative candidates seem to believe they have no option but to rely on anti-Lee Jae-myung sentiment to win the primary,” political commentator Park Sang-byeong said. “The deepening political polarization, which has intensified after the martial law crisis and Yoon's subsequent impeachment, is now spilling over to the presidential race."