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People Power Party lawmakers from Daegu said on March 18 that after meeting with party leader Jang Dong-hyeok at the National Assembly in Yeouido, they agreed to take time to explore options that would allow a primary for the June 3 mayoral nomination.
Rep. Lee In-seon, chair of the Daegu city party, told reporters after the meeting with local lawmakers and Jang that, unlike other regions, Daegu has no incumbent local executive and many sitting lawmakers have registered for the primary. She said they will take time to find a solution acceptable to the candidates.
According to the party’s Nomination Committee, nine candidates have registered for the Daegu mayoral primary, five of them incumbent lawmakers: Yoo Young-ha, Yoon Jae-ok, Joo Ho-young, Choi Eun-seok and Choo Kyung-ho.
Some in political circles speculate the Nomination Committee might grant an outright nomination to former Broadcasting and Communications Commission Chair Lee Jin-sook, or pair Lee against a first-term lawmaker in a head-to-head primary.
Rep. Joo, the most senior lawmaker among the registered candidates, has intensified his criticism of Nomination Committee Chair Lee Jeong-hyun.
Rep. Lee said Daegu has historically used a bottom-up nomination process and that she told the party leader the rumored approach would look like parachuting in a candidate and would be undesirable.
She added that in North Gyeongsang Province (Gyeongbuk) there is an incumbent governor and primaries have already begun; those candidates are also senior figures, so it is hard to accept the idea that only Daegu’s senior members should be asked not to run. She said citizens and the various campaign camps feel the same.
“We will gather the views of the five registered candidates,” Lee said, “and ultimately a primary is likely to be the solution.”
Lee said Jang told them he would consider any reasonable proposal the Daegu lawmakers bring forward.
When asked whether Nomination Committee Chair Lee Jeong-hyun would agree to delay the Daegu primary schedule, Lee said Lee Jeong-hyun’s long political experience means he understands Daegu’s situation and that it should be considered differently from Busan or North Gyeongsang.
Park Jun-tae, chief of staff to the party leader, told reporters that if Daegu lawmakers reach a consensus, the party leader would recommend it to the Nomination Committee.
Park Seong-hoon, the party’s chief spokesperson, said the leader could also convey concerns indirectly through various channels rather than addressing Chair Lee Jeong-hyun directly.
In addition to Rep. Lee, the meeting included Reps. Kang Dae-sik, Kim Seung-su, Kim Ki-woong and Kim Sang-hoon.
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