The Unified Progressive Party is to officially urge its Seoul branch Monday to strike off the proportional representatives who have refused to step down amid a vote-rigging scandal.

“The expulsion of the disputed figures is inevitable to maintain progressive politics,” Kang Ki-kab, chief of the party’s interim emergency committee, said in a letter to party members on Saturday.

“I understand that many party members are against the disciplinary actions but the disciplinary committee is obligated to carry out the central committee’s decision and to meet supporters’ expectations.”

The panel earlier demanded that Lee Seog-gi and Kim Jae-yeon step down voluntarily with two other candidates by Friday but the four refused.

“The panel is not entitled to expel the proportional elects without the general consent of the party members,” said Oh Byung-yun, a member of the opposing faction.

He also said that the party should first prove the given vote-rigging allegations to be true before asking the lawmakers-elect to take responsibility.

Despite the backlash, the party’s Seoul office is expected to confirm the expulsion and support the panel’s decision.

“We believe that the committee made the necessary decision (to expel all disputed figures) to apologize to the people and regain their trust,” said 33 UPP regional branch chiefs in a joint statement on Friday.

Lee and Kim earlier transferred their party membership to the Gyeonggi branch office but the panel claimed that the central headquarters still held jurisdiction over them.

However, the process may be complicated as the new parliamentary term is scheduled to kick off this Wednesday.

Once the 19th parliament kicks off, elected figures may only be kicked out of the party with a majority vote of the party’s in-house members.

Also, the expulsion proposal may be annulled if a court suspends Kang from his post, upholding the resisting faction’s injunction.

By Bae Hyun-jung (tellme@heraldcorp.com)