Ahn returns to politics

Center-right politician can become factor in April polls

Former presidential candidate Ahn Cheolsoo returned to Korea, Sunday, after staying overseas following his defeat in the Seoul mayoral race in June 2018.

It is premature to predict whether he will emerge as an opposition leader, but the resumption of his political career is creating ripple effects in the political circle with fewer than 90 days before the April 15 general election.

"I'll consider how to change Korean politics and how the Republic of Korea should move toward the future," Ahn wrote on Facebook, Jan. 2, announcing his plan to return to politics.

Expectations are high among conservative voters that he will help unify them and prevent the much-anticipated liberal domination of the crucial election. However, the harsh reality is that existing conservative parties have differed on how to confront the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and Ahn's political influence is not as strong as it used to be.

Liberty Korea Party Chairman Hwang Kyoahn recently asked Ahn, considered a center-right politician, to join in efforts to unify conservative forces, but Ahn said he was not interested in this idea; only in "changing Korean politics."

But with public support for the ruling party and President Moon Jaein remaining high, there is prevailing skepticism that his return will merely be a "storm in a teacup."

Ahn has become an old-timer, but what voters expect from him has not changed from 2011 when the doctor-turned-computer expert entered politics. We hope he will pursue new politics that transcend deep-rooted problems in Korean society, such as ideological divisions and regionalism. Ahn will resume political activities Monday by paying respects to fallen national heroes at the Seoul National Cemetery. Good luck to him.