Hong Joon-pyo, the former mayor of Daegu who declared his retirement from politics after losing in the People Power Party presidential primary, noted on the 16th, "It seems that after this presidential election, the traditional conservatism of Korea will need to overturn the existing framework and create a new one."
On the same day, Hong Joon-pyo stated on Facebook, "Without a change in the framework, there is no way for the Korean conservative camp to survive."
He said, "The traditional conservatism of this party ended when CEO Lee Hoi-chang retired from politics," adding, "They are only addressing the elderly, not realizing that they have become 'the people's burden,' and are talking about the People Power Party." He continued, "It has been an era where pseudo-conservatives gathered together, using all kinds of flowery language to impersonate traditional conservatism and blind the eyes of the people."
Hong Joon-pyo referred to the time when he served as a 'sharpshooter' for the regime during the administrations of former Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun, saying it was "the happiest time in this party," but added, "Whenever I went out for work and returned home late in the evening, the living room was occupied by people who were doing nothing."
He also commented on a post stating, "I hope decisive measures are taken so that the Hawaii persuasion team doesn't come," saying, "I told them not to come," and added, "It's regrettable for Moon-soo, but that party has already left."
The 'Hawaii persuasion team' refers to the aide of Hong Joon-pyo, Representative Kim Dae-sik, who is reportedly being sent to the U.S. to persuade Hong, who is currently staying in Hawaii, to join the campaign team of People Power Party candidate Kim Moon-soo. Kim is expected to depart on the 18th despite Hong's dissuasion.
Shin Dong-uk, the spokesperson for the campaign team, met with reporters on the same day and said, "I think we may have neglected to comfort (Hong Joon-pyo) after the primary concluded," adding, "That's why, since Representative Kim was also in Hong Joon-pyo's camp, the talk of (Hawaii departure) came up, but nothing has been specifically confirmed yet."