PPP presidential nominee, leadership clash head-on over candidacy merger

Han Duck-soo, left, former prime minister and independent presidential candidate, and Kim Moon-soo, presidential candidate of the conservative People Power Party, interact during their meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, Thursday. Joint Press Corps

An internal rift within the conservative People Power Party (PPP) reached its peak Thursday as presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo and party leadership traded barbs over a proposed candidacy merger with former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, an independent contender.

Kim lashed out at what he called a "forced candidacy merger," rejecting the party’s push, while PPP leaders fired back, accusing him of breaking his campaign pledge and calling his refusal a "pathetic move."

“I demand that the party leadership step back from any efforts to force the so-called unified candidacy and remove me, the legitimate presidential candidate, from the race,” Kim said during a press conference early in the morning.

He called on PPP leaders to cease their attempts to sideline him in favor of Han, saying that as the presidential candidate of the party, he will lead all campaigns and party affairs according to the PPP's internal rules.

Kim also proposed that he and Han conduct separate weeklong campaigns, hold a TV debate on May 14 and conduct a public opinion poll on May 15-16 to decide on a single candidacy. This proposal goes against the party and Han's plan to field a unified candidate before the registration deadline on Sunday.

Kim’s remarks came after he and Han had a one-on-one meeting the previous evening but did not see any progress over fielding a unified candidate.

After the meeting, Kim’s camp accused the PPP leadership of making unilateral decisions regarding the merger process, including scheduling a debate between Kim and Han on Thursday and planning a public opinion poll for Friday and Saturday.

Kim Moon-soo, left, presidential candidate of the conservative People Power Party, is seen at his office in Yeouido, Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap

While Kim said in Thursday's press conference that he would not follow the party's debate and poll schedule this week, Rep. Kwon Young-se, the PPP's interim leader, said the party would push ahead with the poll for Friday and Saturday even if Kim refuses, adding that the candidacy merger should happen before the Sunday deadline.

Kwon said Kim's proposal of fielding a unified candidate after a weeklong campaign is "unattainable because Han had already said he would not register at all if the single candidacy deal is not made by Sunday."

He said even if Han registers and the two sides agree to have Han as the unified candidate afterward, the PPP would not be able to spend money for Han or support his campaign according to the Election Law because Han is not the party's official candidate but an independent candidate.

Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, floor leader for the PPP, criticized Kim’s announcement as "a pathetic attempt to cling to a petty candidacy."

"The candidacy merger is a solemn mandate from our party members and the people. Refusing to comply with that order simply because he was nominated as the presidential candidate is an inappropriate stance," he said.

Rep. Kwon Young-se, right, interim leader of the People Power Party, and Kweon Seong-dong, the party's floor leader, attend a party meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap

Han, for his part, reaffirmed his position that the merger must take place before the registration deadline, a de facto rejection of Kim’s proposal for a weeklong campaign.

"Breaking the promise of unifying the candidacy is a serious discourtesy, an unforgivable act, toward those who genuinely care about the nation, the economy and people’s livelihoods," Han told reporters during his visit to Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, urging Kim to keep the pledge he made during the party’s primary to merge candidacies.

"We must do our best according to the election schedule ... there is no reason to delay it until next week," said Lee Jeong-hyun, a spokesperson for Han’s campaign.

Later in the day, Kim and Han held a one-on-one meeting again at the National Assembly in Seoul, but failed to reach any agreement.

Thursday’s meeting, which lasted for about an hour, only confirmed their differences over the timing of unification.

Han urged that the issue be resolved “today or tomorrow at the latest,” while Kim pushed back, questioning why he was being pressured despite having been elected legitimately as the party's nominee.