Ruling Party's Defeat in April 13 Elections

Ruling Party’s Defeat in April 13 Elections

■ Saenuri Party loses parliamentary majority In the April 13 parliamentary elections held in the fourth year of the Park Geun-hye administration, the ruling Saenuri Party suffered a crushing defeat, presaging a realignment of the political landscape. The ruling party lost not only a majority in the unicameral parliament but also its status as the largest party. In the wake of the defeat, the main opposition Democratic Party became the largest party, while the People’s Party emerged as the third-biggest party. The results reshaped the dynamics at the National Assembly in favor of the opposition bloc and posed a daunting legislative challenge to the ruling bloc. The Saenuri Party failed to secure even a third of the parliamentary seats allotted for the Seoul metropolitan area. It also lost 17 out of the total 65 seats representing southeastern Gyeongsang Provinces, the traditional political bastion for the conservative ruling party, to opposition and independent candi- dates. But the main opposition party secured an overwhelming win in the Seoul metropolitan area and secured many more parliamentary seats than it initially forecast. As a result, it become the largest party in parliament, garnering the right to pick the parliamentary speaker from among its members. The People’s Party scored an overwhelming win in southwestern Jeolla Provinces, the liberal stronghold. It gained 38 seats, much more than the 20- seat threshold required to become a parliamentary negotiating bloc. It even ranked second in terms of ballots that voters cast for their favorite parties. The National Election Commission said that of the total 253 constituencies across the country, the Democratic Party won in 110 constituencies, while the Saenuri Party, People’s Party and Justice Party won in 105, 25 and 2 districts, respectively. Independents secured 11 seats. In terms of the ballot count for each party, the Saenuri garnered 33.5% of

▲ This composite photo shows the mixed looks of the leaders of major South Korean political parties right after the general elections on April 13, 2016 -- Kim Moo-sung of the ruling Saenuri Party, Kim Jong-in of the main opposition Democratic Party and Ahn Cheol-soo of the People’s Party (L to R). HIGHLIGHTS IN KOREA 45 the vote, while the Democratic Party, People’s Party and Justice Party secured 25.5%, 26.7% and 7.2%, respectively. These figures translated into 17 proportional representation seats for the Saenuri Party, 13 for the Democratic Party, 13 for the People’s Party and four for the Justice Party. As a result, the Democratic Party obtained a total of 123 seats, while the Saenuri, People’s and Justice parties gained 122, 38 and six seats, respectively. Except for 11 independents, the total number of seats the opposition parties gained stood at 167.

■ Democratic Party wins in Seoul, becomes largest party Following the electoral triumph, the Democratic Party gained formidable legislative power. It secured 82 out of the 122 seats alloted for the Seoul metropolitan area, which was a hotly contested battleground throughout the election campaign. The party also gained as many as nine seats in Gyeongsang Provinces, the support base for the conservative bloc. There were only three metropolitan areas where the party didn’t gain any seats -- North Gyeongsang Province, Gwangju and Ulsan. But the election outcome also left a challenging task for the party: shoring up support in Jeolla Provinces, the liberal stronghold. Of the total 28 seats in the region, the party gained only three, while the remainder of the seats were obtained by the People’s Party. The People’s Party acquired 38 seats in the elections, emerging as the third- largest party, which analysts say gives it a “casting vote” in important legislative decisions. The party, in particular, swept 23 seats in the Honam region, becom- ing the most popular party in the traditional bastion for the liberal camp. The party also gained 26.7 percent support from the voters, 1.2 percentage points more than the Democratic Party. But in Seoul, the party secured only two seats. The People’s Party’s growth momentum was blunted by a kickback scandal allegedly involving Rep. Kim Su-min, the party’s youngest lawmaker and newly elected proportional representative. The scandal tarnished the image of the party pursuing a break from “old politics.” Taking responsibility for it, Ahn Cheol-soo, a co-chair of the party, offered to step down.

■ Test ground for cooperative governance Amid expectations that the new dynamics of the parliament could set the mood for cooperative governance, Chung Sye-kyun became the first opposition figure to become a parliamentary speaker in 14 years. The parties’ competition to gain the upper hand ahead of the 2017 presidential election intensified, while the political wrangling over legislative issues between the ruling and opposition parties continued to escalate. Against this backdrop, the major corruption and influence peddling scandal involving Park and her friend Choi Soon-sil erupted, which put the president deeper into a lame-duck status. In the thick of the scandal, the Saenuri Party suffered serious factional infighting, which led to a defection of dozens of lawmakers. The defectors formed the Bareun Party, seeking “transparent and warm” conservatism. The Dec. 9 parliamentary impeachment of Park raised the prospect of an early presidential vote, which led political parties to quicken preparations for 46 the poll for the country’s top elected office. Many said that the scandal was a definitive cause for the impeachment, divi- sion of the ruling party and a presidential by-election. But some others said that the opposition parties’ elevated the status in parliament also played a role over the course of key parliamentary events, including a decision to enact an independent counsel probe into the scandal.

The Anti-Graft Law

The Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, or so-called Kim Young-ran Law, officially took effect on Sept. 28, 2016, four years and one month after the Anti- Corruption & Civil Rights Commission’s official proposal was made on Aug. 16, 2012. The law, aimed at curbing corruption, has been evaluated to be the stepping stone to a more transparent society. The law which affects 40,919 institutions and some 4 million people in the country has had a huge impact on the overall society. Still, there has also been criticism that the commission failed to give clear in- structions at the beginning and that it leads to decrease of consumption.

■ From Proposal to Enactment During a cabinet meeting on June 14, 2011, Kim Young-ran, then chief of the Anti-Corruption & Civil Rights Commission, mentioned the need to enact a new law to implement a fair society. After about a year, Kim officially pro- posed the anti-graft law on Aug. 16, 2012 and was submitted to the parliament on Aug. 5, 2013, after talks with relevant government agencies. The law passed the National Assembly on March 3, 2015, as a measure to eradicate corruption in the public sector, which was largely pointed as a factor that led to the 2014 ferry Se- wol disaster. The commission announced the enforcement ordinance on May 9, 2016 which was ap- proved at a cabinet meeting on Sept. 6, the same year. On July 28, 2016, the Constitu- tional Court upheld the law, which subjects journalists and private school teachers along ▲ Park Han-cheol, chief justice of the Constitutional Court, sits with public officials to strict at the court in Seoul on July 28, 2016. The court upheld the con- guidelines in regards to gifts, troversial anti-graft law, which subjects journalists and private school teachers along with public officials to strict guidelines in paving the way for its official regards to gifts, paving the way for its official implementation. implementation.

■ The core of Anti-graft law The law is largely comprised of three pillars -- prohibition of corrupt solicitation, ban on receiving money and other valuables and restriction on fees on