PPP picks four candidates to run for party leader

The ruling People Power Party (PPP) shortlisted the top four contenders in the race for party leader Friday, including front-runners Reps. Kim Gi-hyeon and Ahn Cheol-soo.

In addition to the two, Chun Ha-ram, a lawyer considered close to ousted chair Lee Jun-seok, and former Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn were selected, the party’s election committee announced.

They were chosen among six registered candidates in a vote of 6,000 paying party members conducted Wednesday and Thursday. The committee did not disclose the individual rankings and ratings of the candidates on concerns the figures may affect the final election.

Reps. Cho Kyung-tae and Yoon Sang-hyun did not make the cut.

The upcoming race carries added significance as the new leader will be tasked to lead the party to win a majority in the parliament, now controlled by the main opposition Democratic Party that has railroaded motions opposed by the ruling party, such as the dismissal and impeachment of Cabinet members.

The office of President Yoon Suk Yeol is also closely watching the race as it wants a Yoon loyalist to lead the party and help push his agenda in the National Assembly in the remainder of his five-year term until 2027.

Yoon’s office is widely believed to be backing Kim.

Starting Monday, the final candidates will kick off campaign speeches across the nation and take part in four rounds of televised debates ahead of the national convention on March 8.

The party will hold a runoff if none wins a majority and announce the results on March 12.

It is the first time the ruling party will elect its leader only by a vote of party members without including results of public opinion polls. Some observers say the change could make the issue of which candidate Yoon supports a key point.

But others say that the change will make it more difficult to forecast the result considering that some 840,000 party members, the biggest for a conservative party to date, will cast their ballots.

In terms of supporter demographics, a rise in younger party members, in their teens to 30s, and those based in the greater Seoul area are factors expected to affect the race. The party has traditionally been supported by elderly voters coming from Yeongnam, the country’s southeastern region known as a conservative stronghold.

Alongside the election for party leader, the PPP will pick five members to join the party’s Supreme Council in the national convention. Twelve candidates have been shortlisted.