Public verdict for the People Power Party: Reform conservatism and rebuild the right

The People Power Party (PPP) emerged from this local election with a far more consequential mandate than the number of governorships or National Assembly seats it managed to secure. Voters delivered a clear message: Reform the party into a credible leading opposition force representing conservative values and rebuild the conservative camp itself.

 Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon on Thursday described his victory as a “platform for the revival of conservatism.” In other words, voters have granted conservatives one final opportunity — much like the “winter magpie’s share” he invoked on the campaign trail, a metaphor for a last reserve left amid hardship. His assessment likely reflects what he sensed throughout the campaign: Supporters believe the reconstruction of conservatism is urgently needed if there is to be any meaningful check on the dominance of the Lee Jae Myung administration and the Democratic Party. Whether the PPP leadership, which entered this election without decisively severing ties with the legacies of martial law and the “Yoon Again” movement, truly grasps the depth of that sentiment remains doubtful.

Just two months ago, the party leadership was so preoccupied with appeasing its hard-line support base that Oh refused even to apply for the party’s nomination. It would be a serious mistake if that same leadership, buoyed by several dramatic come-from-behind victories, were to conclude that it has regained the confidence of the public.

 The PPP barely managed to hold on to four metropolitan and provincial leadership posts — Seoul mayor, Daegu mayor, and the governors of North Gyeongsang and South Gyeongsang provinces — while suffering crushing defeats elsewhere, losing in 12 regions to the Democratic Party. Even in Daegu, long regarded as the heartland of Korean conservatism, the party prevailed by only 8.87 percentage points. The margin shrank dramatically from last year’s presidential election, when PPP candidate Kim Moon-soo gained 44 percentage points more than Lee Jae Myung there.

 Particularly painful was the loss of Busan and Ulsan, traditional conservative strongholds, after fiercely contested races. Across key battlegrounds, the election exposed the limitations of the party’s current leadership. The victory of former party leader Han Dong-hoon in the Busan Buk-A constituency by-election — despite efforts by PPP Chairman Jang Dong-hyeok to force him out — should be understood as a reflection of growing public demand for new conservative leadership. Calls for fresh leadership are likely to intensify both inside and outside the party in the months ahead.

The vigorous debate that follows this election will determine whether the nation’s leading opposition party, which has often appeared fragmented and directionless, can reinvent itself or continue down a path of self-destruction. In a social media post on Thursday, Jang signaled his intention to confront growing demands for accountability head-on, writing that he would “not turn away from the heavy responsibility entrusted to me” and would “seek a new path.”

But if party leaders misread the message delivered at the ballot box and remain consumed by personal political ambitions, they risk plunging the party into an even deeper crisis. This is the moment for humility, resolve and genuine self-reflection before a public that has made clear its desire for the rebuilding of conservatism.