Political analyst Park Seong-min has stirred the pot, suggesting that the People Power Party (PPP) is unfairly targeting candidates from the Democratic Party who previously served in the Blue House. His comments come as Ha Jeong-woo, a former senior secretary to President Lee Jae-myung, officially declared his candidacy for the Buk-gu district in the upcoming local elections.
"A candidate who says they are running because the president told them to leave, or because the president said not to leave—does that make them a good candidate? I don't think so," Park said. "The PPP seems to be jealous because they know how symbolic these former Blue House aides are, and how competitive they are in their regions."
Park pointed to Ha and former spokesperson Jeon Eun-su as examples of talent that the PPP finds threatening. "They know these are highly competent people, and that's why they are picking a fight. They know these candidates can strongly appeal to voters."
He also questioned the logic behind the criticism: "If a staff member suddenly resigned without consulting the president, would that be a good staff member? Or if they were forced out, would that be a good candidate? I think there was a natural process of mutual agreement, and running for office is ultimately a personal decision. But because they were senior secretaries, they needed time to align with the president's intentions and their responsibilities as someone who helped shape this administration's AI roadmap."
Park concluded that the PPP's attacks are baseless and driven by fear of strong Democratic contenders.