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PPP leader Jang Dong-hyuk speaks at a Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 10th. / Song Eui-joo, Staff Photographer

The People Power Party is moving to reactivate its Organization Reinforcement Special Committee, halted since the June 3 local elections, launching a full-scale overhaul of party organization. Starting with appointing organizational committee chairs for about 30 troubled district chapters nationwide, the party plans to restructure regional organizations broadly. With this coinciding with a party reform plan set to be announced around Chairman Jang Dong-hyuk's first anniversary in office later this month, observers see this as leadership moving to "reshuffle the board" to consolidate control within the party heading into the second half of Jang's term.

The PPP approved the composition of the special committee at a Supreme Council meeting on the 10th, with Secretary-General Jeong Hee-yong as chair. Rep. Koo Ja-geun will serve as vice chair, with newly elected Rep. Kim Tae-kyu, who entered the National Assembly through a by-election, among the new committee members. From outside the Assembly, the committee also includes district chapter chairs who have openly backed Jang's leadership, including Choi Ki-sik of Uiwang-Gwacheon in Gyeonggi Province and Kwak Nae-kyung of Bucheon-gap in Gyeonggi Province.

The committee is expected to begin restructuring around 30 troubled district chapters, including Gangneung in Gangwon Province, where a by-election is anticipated next April. Given Jang's strong determination to serve out his full term, some observers say this could go beyond simply filling vacancies to include reassessing existing regional organizations and reshuffling personnel more broadly. With the party's regular year-end organizational audit also scheduled, there is speculation this could lead to a sweeping turnover in regional leadership.

In particular, alongside restructuring regional organizations, Jang is also preparing a broader reform plan for how the party operates. The reform plan, set to be unveiled around his first anniversary in office on the 26th, is reportedly expected to include measures to expand party members' rights. On the 28th of last month, Jang said party members' views should carry more weight than they currently do in the process of nominating candidates for elected office.

Some within and outside the party interpret this as an attempt by Jang to reshape the party's internal power structure in his favor, building on support from party members. One PPP official said that with many figures friendly to Jang's leadership placed on the special committee, this could be seen as a bold move to secure control over party operations heading into the second half of his term, adding that recent controversies surrounding figures outside the leadership faction have created a favorable environment for consolidating power.

However, the possibility of growing internal backlash remains a variable. Given ongoing tension between the leadership and non-leadership factions over issues such as ethics committee disciplinary actions, there is a real risk that the committee's personnel selections and any turnover of district chapter chairs could be seen as targeting specific factions, potentially sparking further internal conflict.

                                                                                                           Kim Chae-yeon