South Korea ruling party splits to pave way for Ban Ki-moon

If Ban joined the new party, it would give him a conservative platform while distancing himself from the ruling Saenuri party of President Park Geun-hye, which has become tainted by a corruption scandal that led to a parliamentary impeachment vote against her this month. 

The 29 lawmakers defecting from Park’s Saenuri party were among those who supported the parliamentary motion to impeach her over the influence-peddling scandal, which was passed overwhelmingly on Dec 9. Some analysts expect the new party to become the country’s main conservative force and further defections to it from Park’s party were likely, especially if Ban joined. 

“We are hoping Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will join the New Conservative party for Reform, and if he joins, it will be right that he would compete in a fair primary,” Yoo Seong-min, a member of the new party and a possible Presidential contender, told SBS . 

In a Realmeter poll released on Monday, 23.3 percent of respondents supported Ban, just ahead of the liberal Democratic party’s Moon Jae-in, at 23.1 percent. The defections cut the number of seats held by Saenuri to fewer than 100 in the 300-member chamber. The Saenuri unexpectedly lost its majority in April parliamentary elections. 

Ban, 72, has not declared an intention to run for president, only saying he would devote himself to the country after his tenure ends this month after 10 years. Nevertheless, he had until recently been widely expected to run for the top job as a member of Park’s party. 

But running as a Saenuri candidate looks far less attractive given the corruption scandal gripping the country, in which a friend of Park’s is accused of colluding with the President to pressure big businesses into paying money to foundations backing Park’s initiatives. 

Park and the friend, Choi Soon-sil, have denied wrongdoing. Kim Jun-seok, a Dongguk University political science professor, said Ban supporters in the Saenuri party, including lawmakers from his home region of Chungcheong, were waiting to see what he would do.