Ex-president remains deeply divisive figure within People Power Party

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol remains silent as he leaves the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul, Monday. Joint Press Corps

The end of Yoon Suk Yeol’s tumultuous presidency has left his party facing its greatest challenge in years as it attempts to rally its conservative base ahead of the June 3 presidential election.

The People Power Party’s (PPP) coalition is split over how to define its relationship with the impeached leader. It faces the difficult task of crafting a message that appeals to moderates while also energizing hard-right voters who believe Yoon’s martial law decision was justified.

So far, it is not succeeding in that mission, with reformist-minded members refusing to rally behind its candidate, Kim Moon-soo, and urging him to expel Yoon as a party member.

On Monday, Yoon arrived at the Seoul Central District Court for a hearing in his insurrection trial. When a reporter asked if he was willing to apologize for his decision to declare martial law in December, Yoon refused to respond.

This comes a day after he called for unity among conservatives in a social media post.

“It’s time to come together. Those who supported Kim Moon-soo must also join hands with people who supported other candidates,” Yoon wrote. “Our fight is not internal, but against an external totalitarian challenge that threatens our freedom.”

He also vowed to stand with party members "to the end."

Many conservative voters reacted angrily to the post, accusing him of causing the party's division and damaging its election prospects by exerting his influence over it.

“Your irresponsible martial law gave Lee Jae-myung an opportunity to skip his criminal trials and become president,” one commenter replied to his post.

“Just leave the party. You have not been helpful,” said another.

PPP Rep. Cho Kyoung-tae also denounced Yoon.

“Just keep that mouth shut. Staying quiet would help. The party should expel him or do what’s necessary to put itself together,” he said.

Many party members were upset not only by Yoon’s martial law, but also by his continued efforts to influence the party afterward.

After Kim secured the PPP candidacy legitimately through a primary, party leaders close to Yoon attempted to replace him with former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. However, their efforts were thwarted when party members voted to uphold Kim’s candidacy.

Kim Moon-soo, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, visits Daejeon National Cemetery in Daejeon, Monday. Newsis

Despite the attempt to undermine him, Kim appears to have decided to embrace all factions, as the election countdown intensifies.

Kim rejected calls from reformists to suspend Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, a key ally of Yoon, from his role as floor leader and urged him to do his best to win the election. Kim also asked Han to join his campaign as its leader.

However, it remains unclear whether Kim's efforts to unite all factions will succeed, as he continues to take an ambiguous stance on issues related to the impeached president, who was already unpopular before being ousted from office. During the primary in April, Kim called it "irresponsible" for the party to expel Yoon at that time and has since refrained from mentioning his name directly.

But many reformists within the PPP, including Han Dong-hoon, a former party chairman who joined with liberal legislators to support impeachment of Yoon at the National Assembly, say cutting ties with the disgraced leader is a precondition for them to join Kim’s campaign.

“The party needs to cut ties with Yoon and his wife, or it will end up defending them against relentless attacks from Lee Jae-myung during the election period, and they will continue to influence the party,” Han said on Sunday. “When Yoon tries to influence the party by issuing unhelpful messages like he did today, he needs to be expelled.”