Tag: politics

The conservatives have finally settled on a candidate. I guess we will see if it is too little, too late to overcome the huge lead Lee Jae-myung has:

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Sunday he “humbly accepts” his party’s decision to vote down his presidential candidacy, pledging to assist the party’s final candidate Kim Moon-soo’s presidential campaign. 

Lee Jung-hyun, a spokesperson for Han, made the remarks during a press briefing held a day after the People Power Party’s (PPP) plenary meeting voted down a motion led by the party’s leadership to replace the party’s presidential candidate, Kim, with Han. 

Kim, a former labor minister, had secured the party’s nomination through the primaries, while Han had outperformed him in public polls against Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

It seems this could lead to a Constitutional crisis if Lee is convicted after he is President:

 The Seoul High Court on Wednesday postponed the first hearing of Democratic Party (DP) presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung’s retrial on election law violation charges until after the June 3 presidential election, citing the need to guarantee his right to a fair trial.

The court said it postponed the hearing from May 15 to June 18 “in order to guarantee a fair electioneering opportunity to the defendant, who is a presidential candidate, and eliminate controversies about the fairness of the trial.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

With the Korean Presidential election coming up next month, the conservatives in Korea still have not settled on a unified ticket. Without a unified ticket they will be handing the election to the Democratic Party’s Lee Jae-myung without even putting up a fight:

Kim also said there was “no meaningful progress” made during the discussion, calling the outcome “regrettable.”

Han did not attend the post-meeting press briefing as he left immediately after the talks concluded without a deal. 

Kim said he proposed ideas for unifying the conservative candidacy but Han stuck to his previously stated position.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

If the conservatives want any chance at beating Lee they need to rally around Han Duck-soo and soon:

Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of South Korea’s main liberal Democratic Party, holds a lead in a potential three-way race for the country’s next election, but support for the conservative bloc shows signs of resurgence, shows a new poll released Monday.

The poll, conducted by Realmeter from April 30 to May 2, found Lee leading with 46.5 percent support in a hypothetical matchup against former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who is running as an independent, and Lee Jun-seok of the centrist Reform Party.

Han garnered 34.3 percent of support, and Lee Jun-seok trailed with 5.9 percent.

In a separate scenario replacing Han with Kim Moon-soo, the candidate of the main conservative People Power Party, Lee still led the field with 46.6 percent, with Kim at 27.8 and Lee Jun-seok at 7.5 percent.

Han and Kim are expected to begin negotiations soon to merge their candidacies in a bid to challenge the liberal frontrunner.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Han Duck-soo is actually from the Honam area and was paying his respects to the dead from the 1980 Gwangju Uprising Incident when he was assaulted by protesters:

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo visited a national cemetery honoring victims of a 1980 pro-democracy uprising Friday as the first stop of his election campaign for the June election but was met with protests. 

Han traveled to the May 18th National Cemetery in Gwangju, 357 kilometers south of Seoul, hours after formally announcing his bid for the June 3 election. Upon arrival, he was confronted by demonstrators expressing opposition to his presence.

On Thursday, Han resigned from his roles as acting president and prime minister, positions he had held following President Yoon Suk Yeol’s brief imposition of martial law in December.

As Han attempted to enter the cemetery, a participant in the rally struck him on the head with a protest placard, prompting immediate intervention by security personnel. Han reportedly did not sustain serious injuries.

Facing strong opposition and a standoff that lasted approximately 20 minutes, Han ultimately paid his respects with a silent tribute at the cemetery’s entrance before leaving the site.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but the fact the Korean left sent protesters after Han like this makes me think they are concerned he is a real threat to Lee Jae-myung winning the upcoming Presidential election.

Here is the latest on leading Korean Presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung’s legal problems:

An appellate court will hold the first hearing of a retrial in an election law violation case involving Democratic Party (DP) presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung on May 15, just weeks before the June election. 

The Seoul High Court set the date just one day after the Supreme Court struck down the lower court’s acquittal of Lee on charges of election law violation in March and remanded the case for a retrial. 

Yonhap

It appears regardless of what happens Lee will be able to run for President. What is not clear is if the trial can continue while he is President and what happens if he is convicted:

The appeals court said it has requested a court official to directly deliver a summons to Lee to attend the hearing.

If Lee does not appear at the hearing, the court would need to reschedule the trial, making it unlikely that a verdict will be delivered before June 3.

Even if Lee is sentenced before the election, he would likely appeal it, which would enable him to run in the race. 

There is currently no clear rule on whether a criminal trial in progress may continue if the indicted individual is later elected president.

Earlier in the day, the DP proposed a bill that suspends an ongoing criminal trial for a president-elect, which is seen as a move to mitigate legal risks surrounding Lee.

You can read more at the link.

If Han Duck-soo wins the Presidency what a journey he would have had. He served as the Prime Minister for both liberal and conservative governments. He then became acting President when Yoon Suk-yeol was impeached to just get impeached himself. He was then reinstated by the Constitutional Court as acting President and now he is resigning to run for President:

Acting President Han Duck-soo resigned Thursday, indicating he would run for the June 3 presidential election.

Han announced his decision in an address to the nation, ending weeks of speculation over whether he would enter the election triggered by the impeachment of his former boss — former President Yoon Suk Yeol.

“Thinking of the weight of the responsibility I carry at this grave time, after thinking long and carefully about whether such a decision is in fact right and inevitable, I decided that if this is the only way, I must take it,” he said from the government complex in Seoul.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but I doubt it is a coincidence he is running for President now after the decison by the Supreme Court to nullify the election law violation aquital of Lee Jae-myung.

Out of all the shady things that Lee Jae-myung is under investigation for lying to the media could be what brings him down:

The Supreme Court on Thursday struck down a lower court’s acquittal of Democratic Party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung on charges of election law violation, sending the case back to the appeals court.

In a televised decision, the top court overturned the Seoul High Court’s verdict in March, which acquitted Lee of lying as a presidential candidate during the 2022 election campaign.

The Supreme Court’s ruling came about a month before the country will hold the June 3 presidential election. The case has drawn intense attention due to the possibility that the top court’s decision could affect his eligibility to run for office.

Yonhap

What is interesting about the verdict is that it was an overwhelming decision. 10 of the 12 justices agreed that the appeals court was wrong to overturn the conviction. You would think a Supreme Court ruling would reimpose the verdict that the appeals court nullified. However, according to the Korea Times his case has to be retried:

The Supreme Court on Thursday overturned an appellate court’s decision to acquit Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung of his election law violation charges, sending the case back to the high court for a retrial.

The ruling does not immediately disqualify Lee as a candidate in the upcoming June 3 presidential election, as the retrial verdict is unlikely to be reached before Election Day. However, the Supreme Court’s ruling — which found that the appellate court misinterpreted parts of the law, effectively implying Lee’s guilt on some charges — is expected to reignite political debate over his suitability as a candidate, with less than five weeks remaining before the election.

Under the relevant law, anyone fined 1 million won ($699.30) or more for violating the nation’s election law is barred from running for public office for the next five years or up to 10 years if sentenced to imprisonment.

The case centers on two controversial remarks made by Lee during his previous presidential campaign in 2021. Prosecutors charged him with violating the Public Official Election Act for allegedly making false statements regarding land development projects in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, which took place while he was mayor of the city.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but it is going to be interesting to see how this ruling impacts Korea Presidential election which Lee is the current favorite to win.