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SEOUL, May 10 (AJP) - The People Power Party (PPP) launched an unprecedented candidate replacement process early Saturday morning, canceling Kim Moon-soo’s nomination and registering former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo as its new presidential candidate, following the collapse of unification talks between the two conservative contenders.
At around 3 a.m. on May 10, PPP election committee chair Lee Yang-soo announced via the party's website that Han had been officially registered as the party’s presidential nominee, citing Article 74-2 of the party constitution and related regulations. This came shortly after Lee issued a prior notice declaring the cancellation of Kim’s nomination and the opening of a one-hour candidate registration window from 3 a.m. to 4 a.m.
The move follows the breakdown of negotiations between Kim and Han over how and when to consolidate their candidacies. While the party leadership pushed for unification before the May 11 deadline for official registration with the National Election Commission, Kim had insisted on conducting public polling on May 15–16 to determine a single candidate.
In response, the party invoked a rule allowing the emergency leadership committee to determine candidate nomination procedures under “extraordinary circumstances.” Party officials cited the results of a May 7 internal survey in which 86.7 percent of members supported unification before the NEC deadline as justification for the switch.
An additional internal preference poll was conducted among party members and the public on May 8 and 9 to gauge support between Kim and Han. While the results were not publicly disclosed, sources said Han held the lead.
The party plans to complete the nomination process through a full-member vote on May 10, followed by a final confirmation by the national committee on May 11.
Despite a series of legal challenges by Kim’s camp, including a request to prevent the national committee from convening, the Seoul Southern District Court dismissed all injunctions, effectively clearing the way for the party to proceed.
Kim, however, has refused to back down. He announced plans to independently register with the National Election Commission as the PPP’s official candidate and requested access to the party’s nomination seal and the required deposit account for registration. His chief of staff, Kim Jae-won, declared the leadership’s actions “clearly illegal” and confirmed Kim’s intention to proceed with registration on the morning of May 10.
With the party leadership unlikely to cooperate with the registration process, a legal and political standoff now appears inevitable.
The fallout from the early-morning decision has exposed deep rifts within the PPP. One sitting lawmaker called the leadership’s action “unavoidable,” while others expressed concern that the party could now face a prolonged legal and internal crisis.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
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