Reform Party leader Lee Jun-seok sits in thought after delivering an apology over allegations that the attack on Jeong I-han, a former Busan mayoral candidate, was a self-staged stunt, at a supreme council meeting at the National Assembly on June 18. [Yonhap]
Reform Party leader Lee Jun-seok sits in thought after delivering an apology over allegations that the attack on Jeong I-han, a former Busan mayoral candidate, was a self-staged stunt, at a supreme council meeting at the National Assembly on June 18. [Yonhap]

Conservative political commentator Jo Gap-je, head of Jokapje.com, said Monday that Reform Party leader Lee Jun-seok could have won had he run for Gyeonggi Province governor.

Speaking on SBS Radio's "Kim Tae-hyun's Politics Show" on Monday, Jo was asked about the Reform Party's outlook following its poor showing in the June 3 local elections. "Lee misused this local election," Jo said.

The Reform Party managed to elect only a single local council member — from Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, Lee's home constituency — and has since been thrown into crisis by allegations that Jeong I-han, the party's Busan mayoral candidate, staged a fake attack on himself.

Jo Gap-je, head of Jokapje.com. [Yonhap]
Jo Gap-je, head of Jokapje.com. [Yonhap]

In the Gyeonggi gubernatorial race, which shaped up as a contest between two women, Democratic Party candidate Choo Mi-ae won by a landslide, taking 55.04 percent of the vote against People Power Party candidate Yang Hyang-ja's 39.37 percent — a margin of 15.67 percentage points.

"Didn't I say that Han Dong-hoon, Oh Se-hoon and Lee Jun-seok all needed to run in the local elections and that they couldn't afford to miss the race?" Jo said. "If Lee had run for Gyeonggi governor, the People Power Party would not have fielded its own candidate." He added that a one-on-one matchup between Lee, backed by the entire conservative bloc, and Choo Mi-ae could have generated real momentum.

"Even if he had lost, the attention would have helped other Reform Party candidates running elsewhere, and the party could have survived — but he failed to create that kind of news," Jo said.

Jo offered a metaphor: "There was a big stage, and he needed to grab the microphone and sing — but he didn't sing."

On Lee's more recent activities, Jo said he had been doing well. "He keeps generating news and has been performing well lately — he criticized People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok's aggressive push for a by-election in a very logical way, and he has been posting thoughtful pieces on social media about the Baejeong High School baseball team controversy," Jo said.

He added, however, that Lee needed to aim higher. "He needs to create a bigger drama than just that kind of role — he will probably have to take on the task of rebuilding the conservative camp," Jo said.

Asked who would become the next Democratic Party leader, Jo said President Lee Jae Myung had effectively engineered a structure in which Kim Min-seok had no choice but to win. "Former leader Jung Chung-rae's standing is shrinking, and how can anyone hold out when a president with four years left in office is in effect acting as the head of the election campaign committee?" he said.

"But even after that, I think internal strife will continue," Jo added.


jshan@heraldcorp.com