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Yoon Yeo-joon, standing co-chair of the Democratic Party of Korea's central election campaign committee, speaks during a meeting at the party’s headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, on May 26. / Source: Yonhap News

The Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) strongly criticized ongoing discussions of a potential merger between conservative presidential candidates, calling it a “tactic lacking legitimacy” that will ultimately be rejected by the public.

At a central election committee meeting held at party headquarters in Yeouido on May 26, Yoon Yeo-joon, standing co-chair of the DPK’s election campaign, warned against what he described as a shallow political maneuver. “Let us not get caught up in political engineering without justification,” Yoon said, referring to speculation that Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Party (PPP) and Lee Jun-seok of the New Reform Party could unify their candidacies. “Schemes like this carry no vision, no substance, and will collapse on their own. The public will turn their backs on them,” he added.

Yoon further emphasized the importance of a decisive political transition. “A genuine new beginning for Korea starts with a stable change of government,” he said. “As long as the ringleader of a rebellion walks the streets and his defenders remain influential, overcoming the national crisis and moving forward will be impossible. We've all seen how they wrecked state affairs over the past three years. We cannot move into the future without holding these regressive and outdated forces accountable. We must commit to a sweeping transition of power.”

He also warned that the election climate would grow more combative as voting day approaches. “We can expect a surge in slander, lies, and smear campaigns,” Yoon noted. “That’s precisely when we must remain humble and face the public and history with integrity.”

DPK co-chair Park Chan-dae also took aim at what he described as “last-minute appointments” by the outgoing Yoon Suk Yeol administration. “Even now, just before the launch of a new government, the Yoon regime is continuing its personnel entrenchment,” he said. Park pointed to reports that close allies of former top officials—including former Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, former Presidential Chief of Staff Kim Dae-ki, and Song Eon-seok, chairman of the National Assembly's finance committee—have been placed in key positions within the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

“This means the budget is now at the mercy of officials from what we see as a rebellious regime,” Park charged. “These appointments reportedly occurred just before Choi stepped down. We can’t help but question the intent. They’ve gone as far as parachuting loyalists into public institutions like Korea Asset Management Corporation and the Korea Rural Community Corporation.”

Park demanded action from Acting President Lee Joo-ho, saying, “We urge you to freeze all personnel appointments until the next government takes office. Any effort to preempt the next administration’s appointment authority will not be tolerated.”