In a statement on April 4, Cha said the party’s stated standards of morality and fairness were undermined by arbitrary judgment, and that he cannot accept the committee’s decision.
He said the committee applied its disqualification criteria inconsistently and demanded an explanation for why it excluded only him while overlooking the criminal records of other primary candidates.
Cha added that legal and administrative advisers confirmed the timing of his resignation from public office complied with the Public Official Election Act, and he characterized challenges to that timing as a legal misunderstanding.
He accused rival campaigns of maliciously spreading information during the vetting process and vowed to hold them legally accountable if the party’s nomination procedures were found to be unfair.
Cha said that if the party committee rejects his rehearing request, he will consider “extraordinary measures” to uphold the will of Haman residents — a remark that has drawn attention to his next political moves.
Local political observers say those “extraordinary measures” could signal a possible independent candidacy.
Meanwhile, the People Power Party’s Gyeongnam provincial nomination committee met on April 3 and finalized the primary candidates and schedule for the Haman County mayoral race in the 9th simultaneous local elections.
After reviewing candidates’ morality, policy understanding, job performance capability, and contributions to the party, the committee confirmed Lee Man-ho, Lee Bo-myeong, Lee Seong-yong, and Jo Young-je as primary candidates (listed in Korean alphabetical order).
Consequently, the Haman mayoral race will proceed directly to the main primary, with no single-candidate endorsement or preliminary selection, intensifying local competition.
The main primary will be held April 13–14 and will combine 50% delegate voting with 50% public opinion polling.
