▲Kim Yong, a close confidant of President Lee Jae-myung and former vice president of the Minjoo Research Institute, claimed on a radio program Thursday that "only two people — lawmaker Kim Young-jin and Secretary-General Cho Seung-rae — are raising objections to his nomination" within the Democratic Party of Korea. He pushed back against Cho's earlier dismissal of his nomination prospects, in which the secretary-general had cited "widespread negative opinions within the party." Kim also claimed that "more than 22 lawmakers have publicly voiced their support." The former vice president has refused to abandon his bid for the June 3 by-election despite receiving prison sentences in both the first and second trials over the Daejang-dong scandal. Attention now turns to what conclusion the Democratic Party leadership will reach.
▲According to the National Barometer Survey (NBS) released Thursday, the People Power Party's approval rating has fallen to 15 percent. This is the lowest level since the party's founding in September 2020 and far below the Democratic Party's 48 percent. Even as the party's ratings plummet, PPP leader Jang Dong-hyuk said the same day that "it is time to properly identify who we should be fighting against," adding that he would "immediately replace any candidate engaging in anti-party activities." Turning a deaf ear to the mounting internal calls for him to "step back to the second line," he instead took aim at the pro-Han faction aligned with Han Dong-hoon. One has to wonder just who is really engaging in anti-party activities here.
