No retrospection, No trust

The clear-cut victory last week of a Democratic Party (DP) candidate in the by-election for the district head of Gangseo in Seoul over his People Power Party (PPP) rival with six months left before the parliamentary elections next year suggests the conservative PPP has lost its hard-won favor from the people. DP candidate Jin Kyo-hoon crushed the reinstated Gangseo district head, Kim Tae-woo from the PPP, by a whopping 17.15 percentage points, even considering the fact that the western district is a traditional base for the DP. The defeat means the conservative party may have lost the centrists in the capital region that the party secured through its successive triumphs in the presidential election and local elections last year.

The defeat of the PPP in the first election since the launch of the conservative administration under President Yoon Suk Yeol may have resulted from the party’s strategic mistake of sticking to Kim who was removed from office for leaking government documents two years ago. But the loss also reflects public disapproval of the governance of the conservative administration.

The governing front must first ruminate on its appointment style. Kim Haeng, the controversial nominee for the minister of gender equality and family, withdrew herself belatedly after the landslide defeat in the Gangseo by-election despite snowballing allegations against her suspicious wealth-building. Public opinion on her worsened after she stormed out of the confirmation hearing without giving a clear explanation on the many allegations against her.

The policymaking process also requires a review. Half-baked ideas such as accepting first-graders at age 5 and extending our workweek up to 69 hours underscored deficiency in policy coordination. Such repetitions can fuel public distrust in the government. The ruling front nevertheless moved more to the right, while shunning any dialogue with the DP.

The upcoming parliamentary election will serve as be a midterm vote of confidence for the conservative government and the PPP. Voters will deliver cool judgment on the performance and achievement of the Yoon administration on April 10 next year. To win public confidence, the government has no other choice but to revamp its governance style.