People Power Party lawmakers from Daegu on the 19th urged Nomination Management Committee Chair Lee Jeong-hyeon to hold a fair primary ahead of the June 3 local elections for Daegu mayor.
Except for the five who declared runs for Daegu mayor, lawmakers from the Daegu area released a statement after a meeting at the National Assembly in the afternoon urging the nomination panel to hold a primary. The statement was signed by lawmakers Kang Dae-sik, Kwon Young-jin, Kim Gi-ung, Kim Sang-hoon, Kim Seung-su, Kim Wi-sang, and Lee In-seon.
They said, "The nomination of the Daegu mayoral candidate must respect the democratic primary tradition our party has built and be decided according to the principles and procedures set out in the party constitution and rules," adding, "We clearly oppose an artificial cutoff that does not reflect the will of Daegu citizens."
They continued, "Not only would it be hard to win citizens' support, it would also be impossible to rally party strength for a winning race," and added, "We ask the central party's nomination panel and the candidates participating in the Daegu mayoral primary to agree with our position."
After releasing the statement, lawmaker Kwon Young-jin told reporters, "Back in 2014 when I ran for Daegu mayor, there was also a tradition in which six to seven preliminary candidates were narrowed to four through opinion polls, and those candidates held a primary based on a '50-50' rule between public sentiment and party sentiment."
Kwon noted, "Whatever the nomination method, there is a cutoff, but an arbitrary cutoff that does not reflect the will of Daegu citizens is hard to accept," adding, "A cutoff carried out artificially by the party leadership or the Nomination Management Committee brings too much fallout."