Yoon tells gov’t to improve communication with PPP after by-election drubbing

President Yoon Suk Yeol told his aides Monday to "strengthen communication between the party and government," following the governing People Power Party's (PPP) crushing by-election defeat in Seoul's Gangseo District last week.

People Power Party (PPP) Chairman Kim Gi-hyeon, right, heads into a supreme council meeting Monday as the party named replacements after senior officials, including its secretary general, resigned Saturday to take responsibility for its election defeat in Gangseo District. [YONHAP]

President Yoon Suk Yeol told his aides Monday to "strengthen communication between the party and government," following the governing People Power Party's (PPP) crushing by-election defeat in Seoul's Gangseo District last week.

In a briefing, Lee Do-woon, the presidential spokesperson, said that the instruction came during a meeting with senior secretaries, where Yoon ordered his aides to bolster public outreach through on-site and party-government communication.

"Since the party is always on-site and interacts with local voters, public sentiment can be conveyed more swiftly," a presidential official told reporters. "Therefore, it can be said that strengthening communication between parties and government is a way to strengthen communication with the people."

The PPP likewise decided it will seek reforms following the replacement of several senior officials while retaining its current leadership.

"We will strengthen the party's leading role in conveying and reflecting the public sentiment in relations between the party, the government and the presidential office," Kim said in a supreme council meeting Monday.

The PPP acknowledged last Wednesday's election loss reflected public sentiment but stressed that PPP Chairman Kim Gi-hyeon would helm swift reforms during a general meeting on Sunday.

In a series of back-to-back meetings, the PPP has grimly analyzed its recent defeat, especially in the Seoul metropolitan area, a critical battleground in next April's parliamentary elections.

Jin Kyo-hoon, the candidate for the liberal Democratic Party (DP), won the by-election to head Gangseo District Office last Wednesday, defeating the PPP's candidate Kim Tae-woo, a former chief of the district, by a double-digit figure, a greater margin than expected.

On Saturday, PPP Secretary General Lee Chul-gyu and chief policymaker Park Dae-chul resigned from their posts to take responsibility for the election defeat.

However, Chairman Kim ultimately didn't fall on his sword for the Gangseo election loss, though the race was heavily contested as an indicator of voter sentiment ahead of next April's parliamentary elections.

Rep. Lee Man-hee, named the People Power Party’s new secretary general, speaks during a parliamentary audit at Seoul City Hall in central Seoul Monday. [NEWS1]

In turn, the PPP appointed seven senior party members during a supreme council meeting Monday, including Rep. Lee Man-hee, a second-term lawmaker, as the new PPP secretary general and Rep. Yu Eui-dong, a three-term lawmaker, as chief policymaker.

The new appointees were generally considered not to have strong factional inclinations, indicating Chairman Kim's vision to achieve unity within the party ahead of next year's general elections.

Rep. Lee, hailing from the TK region, referring to Daegu and North Gyeongsang, a conservative stronghold, previously served in then-presidential candidate Yoon's campaign and, as the new secretary-general, will be in charge of nominations ahead of next year's election. While Lee is considered of the pro-Yoon faction, he is still considered to be somewhat neutral, hailing from a police background.

Yu, in turn, represents Pyeongtaek in Gyeonggi, a part of the metropolitan area.

The latest appointments included four people born in the 1970s, including Rep. Yu, and one born in the 1980s, Kim Ye-ji, a supreme council member. Thus, the average age of the council decreased from 58 to 52, reflecting the party's efforts to appeal to a younger constituency.

Yoon granted a special pardon for Kim in August, reinstating his right to run for office after he was removed from his position in May after the top court handed him a suspended prison sentence on charges of leaking government secrets gained while working for a special inspection team under the previous Moon Jae-in Blue House. Some PPP officials said Yoon's pardon gave them little leeway to choose another candidate.

"We will closely coordinate on pending issues in advance to prevent the party and government from being at odds, and if an issue arises that is out of sync with public sentiment, we will actively demand and implement corrections," PPP chief Kim said in Monday's supreme council meeting, indicating he will make a party that is not afraid of speaking up when it has to.

Former People Power Party (PPP) Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, center, holds a press conference calling for the expulsion of former PPP chief Lee Jun-seok at the National Assembly in western Seoul on Monday. [NEWS1]

This comes as the PPP's public support dropped in recent opinion polls, reflecting its recent Gangseo loss, while DP has been seeing increased approval ratings.

The PPP saw its approval rating fall to 32 percent, dropping 4.3 percentage points from the previous week, the lowest since the Yoon administration took office in May last year, in a survey released Monday by pollster Realmeter.

According to the latest poll, the DP's approval ratings surged to 50.7 percent, up 2.9 percentage points from the previous week, the highest since the current administration launched.

President Yoon's approval rating was down to 34 percent, down 3.7 percentage points from the previous week, according to the Realmeter poll, marking the lowest level since May.

The poll on presidential approval was conducted on 2,004 adults from last Tuesday to Friday, and the one on political parties was conducted on 1,003 adults from Thursday to Friday.

Similarly, a Gallup Korea released Sunday saw the approval rating for the PPP drop to 33.9 percent compared to 38.1 percent for the DP. The poll was conducted on 1,013 adults over Thursday and Friday.

This was a flip from June when the PPP was in the lead with 38 percent compared to 32.8 percent for the DP.

Internal bickering ensued as PPP Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo on Monday called for the expulsion of former chief Lee Jun-seok for being a hindrance to their party, including making crass remarks to media last week that appeared to attack the PPP during the Gangseo District by-election.

Ahn said in a press conference at the National Assembly Monday that he will report Lee's actions in the Gangseo District by-election to the party's ethics committee to seek his expulsion from the PPP.

"If we leave Lee Jun-seok alone, he will attack the party again in the general elections next year, and he will produce fake news and appear on broadcasts to ridicule our party," Ahn said. "Severe punishment is necessary to prevent this."

He called Lee out for his "arrogance," asking, "How long are we going to allow this spoiled brat to wreak havoc on our party?"

Since Saturday, Ahn has organized a petition to seek disciplinary action against Lee, gaining 16,036 signatures as of Monday morning.

Lee conducted a profanity-filled media interview last Tuesday, on the eve of the by-election, critical of Ahn amid the campaign for the Gangseo District chief race, and the two have been embroiled in a war of words since.

Former People Power Party (PPP) chief Lee Jun-seok holds a tearful press conference calling for his party’s reform following its by-election defeat in Gangseo District last week at the National Assembly in western Seoul on Monday. PPP Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo in turn has been leading a petition demanding Lee’s expulsion from the party. [YONHAP]

In a tearful press conference later Monday, Lee called for changes to the Yoon government and the PPP's administrative policies, saying he felt "devastated" over the recent election defeat.

"The PPP candidate's approval ratings in the by-election are linked to the president's ratings as shown in various opinion polls," Lee said.

He noted next year's general elections will be held at a "turning point" of the Yoon government's five-year term and "will be a cold evaluation of the first half of the administration."

Lee was ousted as the PPP's youngest-ever chairman in August last year over sexual bribery allegations.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]