On the night of May 9, 2025, the second round of working-level negotiations aimed at unifying presidential candidates Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Party and independent candidate Han Deok-soo ended in failure once again. The negotiations, which resumed at 10:30 PM, lasted only about 30 minutes before breaking down over disagreements regarding the inclusion of party members in the selection process.
Kim Jae-won, Chief Secretary for candidate Kim, expressed frustration after the talks, stating, "The Han candidate's side insisted that since this is about selecting the People Power Party candidate, party members must be included, which was a non-negotiable point for them. This led to no real progress in the discussions." He further commented on the situation by recalling, "I remembered Han's outrageous lies and realized there was no room left for negotiation."
On the other hand, Son Young-taek, Chief Secretary for candidate Han, communicated a different perspective, saying, "We fully accepted the K-voting system targeting People Power Party members, but Kim's side refused to agree on that point, which ultimately led to the collapse of the negotiations." The breakdown was reminiscent of the first round of discussions, which also ended in failure due to disagreements over reverse selection prevention measures in the unification survey.
Candidate Kim's team pushed for a 100% public opinion poll without party affiliation, while Han's team advocated for a combination of 50% party member votes and 50% public opinion polls, or even a 100% party member vote. Kim's team argued that the insistence on including party members in the selection process was a way to mobilize party members unfairly. Kim Jae-won stated, "This is not an internal party primary but a unification with an independent candidate. Insisting on including party members insults the party members themselves."
Conversely, Son Young-taek maintained that it was essential to prevent supporters of Lee Jae-myung from participating in the unification primary, arguing that the principle of excluding them is not negotiable. Kim's team indicated that if negotiations collapsed by midnight, the People Power Party's leadership would convene an emergency committee to initiate a candidate re-selection process.
Despite the stalemate in negotiations, Kim's side declared their intention to register as the People Power Party's presidential candidate with the Central Election Management Committee on May 10, 2025, regardless of the party's actions. Kim's firm stance, however, did not deter the party's leadership from moving forward with discussions regarding candidate replacement.
On May 10, 2025, the People Power Party convened an emergency countermeasures committee meeting to officially revoke Kim Moon-soo's candidacy and re-nominate Han Deok-soo as the party's presidential candidate. This decision followed the breakdown of unification negotiations the previous day, which had failed after multiple rounds due to persistent disagreements.
During a general meeting of lawmakers, the party had decided to delegate all procedures related to candidate re-selection to the emergency committee. At this meeting, it was agreed that if the two candidates could not reach an agreement, the emergency committee would handle the candidate re-selection process.
According to Shin Dong-wook, the People Power Party's chief spokesperson, the process of revoking Kim's candidacy and registering a new candidate was expected to be completed by the evening of May 10. He stated, "We need to finalize Kim Moon-soo's candidacy revocation and proceed with the new candidate registration process tonight." He further explained that Han Deok-soo would submit his application and that the emergency committee would then make a decision on proceeding with the new presidential candidate selection process.
Shin noted that the registration procedure requires only a single document but emphasized that a vote among all party members and a decision by the national committee would be necessary. He warned that there was a possibility of Han's candidacy being rejected during this process. The party's leadership is expected to ask its members for approval to register a candidate from another party, which would include a question like, "Do you agree to nominate Han as our party's candidate?" This vote is anticipated to take place from the morning to the afternoon of May 10.
Candidate Kim's team, however, maintained that they would move ahead with the candidate registration process regardless of the party's re-selection procedure. They asserted that Kim remains the official candidate of the People Power Party and cannot accept what they termed a forced candidate replacement. Reports indicate that Kim's team had communicated to the party office their intention to submit the necessary documents for candidate registration by 9 AM on May 10, including a recommendation letter and a bankbook containing the required deposit.
Despite the tension, the People Power Party's leadership was determined to proceed with the candidate re-selection process. Kwon Young-se, chairman of the emergency countermeasures committee, is set to announce the committee's decisions at the National Assembly on May 10, 2025. A vote of all party members is expected to occur to determine support for the new candidate, and if a majority approves, the candidate re-selection process will be finalized by May 11, 2025.
The ongoing situation highlights the complexities and challenges within the People Power Party as it navigates candidate selection amid internal disagreements and the pressure of upcoming elections. As negotiations falter and leadership makes decisive moves, the future of the party's presidential candidacy remains uncertain, with both Kim Moon-soo and Han Deok-soo poised to play pivotal roles in the unfolding political drama.
