Lee Jin-sook, former chairwoman of the Korea Communications Commission, signaled her willingness to be deployed as the party's "relief pitcher" in battleground districts in the greater Seoul metropolitan area. She indicated she would set aside her own political plans and take the path of "party first, self later" for the sake of the party's victory.
In an interview with SBS Radio's "Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show" on the 28th, Lee said, "It is true that within the People Power Party (PPP), there were discussions about holding a final primary between candidates Choo Kyung-ho and Yoo Young-ha before April 30."
Explaining the background to her decision to give up running for Daegu mayor, she said, "Whether running as an independent or forcing a final primary through, there were serious concerns that either outcome would ultimately benefit Democratic Party candidate Kim Boo-kyum." She added, "I made the decision not to run in order to avoid hurting the party." She emphasized that it was a difficult but necessary measure to prevent a general election defeat caused by a split vote.
Lee also spoke about her communication with the party leadership. Asked by the host whether she had met with party leader Jang Dong-hyuk in Seoul, she replied, "On April 9, there was a meeting before Chairman Jang departed for the United States." At that meeting, Jang reportedly asked Lee to "enter the National Assembly and help fight against the lawless Democratic Party regime."
Regarding her future course, Lee said she would not rule out "going into the tough terrain of the metropolitan area." On the possibility of running in the Daegu Dalseong by-election for the seat held by Rep. Choo Kyung-ho, she was cautious, saying, "It is inappropriate to comment on this while Rep. Choo has not yet resigned."
When the host asked whether she would accept a request to run in tough metropolitan districts where the PPP is trailing, such as Hanam-A or Ansan-A in Gyeonggi Province, Lee made her intention to run clear, saying, "If there is any role I can play to block the expansion of the Democratic Party regime, I will not refuse anything."
She drew a line against the "Jang Dong-hyuk resignation theory" raised in some quarters of the party. "With less than 40 days left before the election, if the party leader steps down, it would only cause greater chaos," Lee said. She stressed, "To win the June 3 local elections, we must unite in a single line," throwing her support behind the party leadership.
