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In a symbolic move to counter its falling popularity ahead of April's parliamentary elections, the ruling Grand National Party will announce its new name later this week, party officials said Sunday.
The GNP is in an emergency mode after losing the Seoul mayoral race in October last year. Recent public polls show that the conservative party is rapidly losing public support and may likely come up short in the general and presidential elections scheduled for this year.
GNP leader Park Geun-hye, one of the leading presidential hopefuls, accepted the name-change last week and the ruling party has publicly received some 10,000 potential names throughout the Internet, officials said.
The GNP had originally planned to announce its new name on Monday but postponed the announcement until Thursday, party spokesman Hwang Young-cheul told reporters.
"We decided to delay the announcement for more careful consideration of potential names," Hwang said.
It will be the first time in 15 years the ruling party has changed its title since the name GNP was established in 1997 through a merger.
Since Korea achieved a full democracy in 1987, political parties have often changed their names to shed their tarnished images.
The GNP has been hit with several corruption scandals in recent months, the latest being allegations that Park Hee-tae, the former GNP chairman and current National Assembly speaker, offered money to fellow legislators during campaigns for a party leadership election in 2008.
(Yonhap)
The GNP is in an emergency mode after losing the Seoul mayoral race in October last year. Recent public polls show that the conservative party is rapidly losing public support and may likely come up short in the general and presidential elections scheduled for this year.
GNP leader Park Geun-hye, one of the leading presidential hopefuls, accepted the name-change last week and the ruling party has publicly received some 10,000 potential names throughout the Internet, officials said.
The GNP had originally planned to announce its new name on Monday but postponed the announcement until Thursday, party spokesman Hwang Young-cheul told reporters.
"We decided to delay the announcement for more careful consideration of potential names," Hwang said.
It will be the first time in 15 years the ruling party has changed its title since the name GNP was established in 1997 through a merger.
Since Korea achieved a full democracy in 1987, political parties have often changed their names to shed their tarnished images.
The GNP has been hit with several corruption scandals in recent months, the latest being allegations that Park Hee-tae, the former GNP chairman and current National Assembly speaker, offered money to fellow legislators during campaigns for a party leadership election in 2008.
(Yonhap)
