'Daegu was a struggle, South Gyeongsang barely won — what role did he play?'

'If Jang had meddled in Seoul, the party would likely have lost there too'

'He must not use calls for a full re-election as a shield for his own position'

'I exchanged messages with Han Dong-hoon — his return to the party is only natural'

People Power Party lawmaker Cho Kyung-tae. [Yonhap]
People Power Party lawmaker Cho Kyung-tae. [Yonhap]

People Power Party lawmaker Cho Kyung-tae said Thursday that party leader Jang Dong-hyeok must honor his pledge to step down following the party's defeat in the local elections.

Speaking on KBS Radio's "Jeongyeok Sisa" program, Cho said that if Jang clings to his position, "the longer it goes on, the worse it will look." Jang has roughly one year and two months remaining in his term.

Newly elected floor leader Jeong Jeom-sik, chosen the previous day, said the question of Jang's future would be "resolved through the collective wisdom of fellow lawmakers." Cho pushed back, saying Jang is "in effect defending Yoon Suk Yeol, the ringleader of the insurrection," and said that "calling for Jang Dong-hyeok's resignation is the intellectually honest position to take."

Jang had effectively refused to step down, telling critics to look at the "objective data" from the local election results. Cho rejected that framing. "How difficult was the Daegu race? South Gyeongsang was barely won. That is the objective data," he said. "The Seoul race was won solely on the strength of mayoral candidate Oh Se-hoon's own competitiveness — what role did Jang Dong-hyeok play?"

Cho went further, saying that "if Jang had gone around stirring things up in Seoul, I think there is a very high probability the Seoul mayoral race would have been lost as well." He added that the local elections ended in a clear 12-to-4 defeat for the party. "That is the objective data. I hope he will assess himself more coolly and honestly, and reflect on that."

On Jang's calls for a full re-election of the party leadership, Cho said Jang "must not use it as a shield," adding that "he needs to be able to separate his own future from the election commission's wrongdoing."

On the question of whether independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon should be allowed to rejoin the party, Cho said the election results showed that "Han Dong-hoon's expulsion was wrong." He said the party's revival must be led by "reasonable and reform-minded figures" if it is to rebuild as a governing party that truly represents the public. "His return to the party is only natural," he added.

Cho also said he and Han had exchanged messages during the campaign. "We sent each other texts saying 'keep up the good work' and 'hang in there,'" he said, adding that many party members who want a rational, conservative revival had cheered Han on from afar or visited him on the campaign trail.

Cho said the People Power Party should chair any parliamentary investigation into the ballot shortage that occurred during the elections. Asked whether President Lee Jae Myung and Cheong Wa Dae should also be included as subjects of the probe, he said, "I think everyone would inevitably have to be subject to investigation."


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