Lee Jun-seok, leader of the New Reform Party, abruptly stepped down after his push to overhaul the party stalled against internal disagreement. Lee decided to resign after the reform drive he had pursued since the local elections struggled to gain momentum.
Lee announced his decision at a news conference at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 26th, saying, "Today I am stepping down as leader of the New Reform Party."
"For a little over three months since the local elections, I have reflected on and proposed ways to strengthen and reform the party," Lee said. "But I did not win enough support within the party."
"This is no one's fault," he added. "The responsibility for failing to persuade lies entirely with me as leader."
Lee also explained his reasoning. "There is a political timetable ahead of us that cannot be put off. Political time waits for no one," he said. "I concluded that we cannot meet that schedule without agreement on direction."
"If I was instead standing in the way of what other party members wanted to do, I thought vacating the post was the path to choose for the party's sake," he said. "As a single party member and as the National Assembly representative for Dongtan 2 New Town, I will do my work where I stand."
The current leadership has also settled on resigning en masse along with Lee. The New Reform Party, which has relied heavily on Lee's political capital from its founding through its day-to-day operations, now faces a test of standing on its own following his departure. With only three seats in the National Assembly and limited personnel to lead the party, forming the next leadership and establishing a new rallying point have emerged as its biggest challenges.
